


Winds of Change

by JS Jamesbrooke (Jaywriter)



Category: Grey's Anatomy
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-11-08
Updated: 2014-08-28
Packaged: 2017-12-31 21:10:53
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 30
Words: 79,245
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1036442
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jaywriter/pseuds/JS%20Jamesbrooke
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Sequel to You're the One That I Want. Callie and Arizona are finally getting settled into their lives and careers just as changes are about to come their way.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

“We’re home,” Callie told her wife softly as she ran her fingers through the blonde’s hair, gently waking her from the light nap. “Come on, sweetie. Let’s get you both inside.”

Slowly opening her eyes, Arizona tried to wake herself up. Opening the door, she mindfully slid out of the SUV, careful not to jar her already sore body. She was just about to open the back door, when Callie blocked her path.

“I got her. You need to take it easy,” Callie reminded her. Picking the carseat up out of its base, Callie used her free hand to hold her wife’s as she led them to the side door. As soon as they were standing in the kitchen, they were greeted by a very excited three year old.

“Mommies are home,” Amelia squealed.

Getting down on her knees, Arizona caught her daughter, pulling her into a tight hug. “Yep, we’re finally home,” she smiled. To the blonde, the last couple of days spent in the hospital seemed to last forever. She was never more grateful to be home.

“Sissy home too?” Amelia asked, eyeing the seat in her mother’s hand that was turned away from her.

“Yes, your sister is right here,” Callie answered, turning the baby around so that Amelia could see the sleeping baby inside. “Say, ‘Hi Alexia’,” she instructed knowing their newborn would likely sleep through it anyway.

“Hi, Wexia,” Amelia tried, bending over the carseat so she could get a better look at her new little sister.

“Close enough,” Arizona laughed. “Should we go down and show her your room?” she suggested.

Amelia nodded her head excitedly as she grabbed her mama’s hand and drug her down the stairs towards their basement apartment. Jumping down the last step, Amelia let go of Arizona’s hand, racing for her room. Instead of following, Arizona waited patiently at the bottom of the stairs for Callie and Alexia to join them.

Amelia pushed open the door to her room and began turning in circles taking everything in. She couldn’t decide what to show her new sister first. Should she show her the big toy box full of fun toys? Or maybe the bookshelf that her mommies took a book from every night to read to her.

Bored with waiting, Amelia walked over to her bed, climbed up, and began bouncing on it. Her feet never left the bed but it was still more fun than waiting for everyone to get in there.

“Amelia Robbins, get down off that bed right now,” Arizona chastised. “You know better than that.”

Not caring in the least that she just got yelled at, Amelia jumped off the bed and landed on her feet. “This is my bed, sissy,” she announced, patting her purple comforter. “And this is your bed,” she told the infant as she walked across the room and pointed at the crib that had once been Amelia’s.

The one drawback to their little apartment was that there were only two bedrooms. While Barbara had pointed out that there were several rooms upstairs that were available, neither Callie nor Arizona wanted their daughters that far away from them. Besides they’d likely be moving in a couple years anyway for med school, long before Amelia and Alexia were old enough to care about sharing a room.

“Yes, that’s Alexia’s crib, but she won’t sleep in it for a couple weeks,” Callie told their oldest child.

“How come?”

Bending down so that she was eye level with Amelia, Arizona started to explain. “Right now she’s too little to sleep all the way through the night like you do. So she’ll sleep in Mommy and Mama’s room so that she doesn’t wake you up. That’s why we have the bassinet set up in there.”

“Oh,” was all Amelia said.

After leading them on a thorough tour of their room, the four of them returned to the family room slash kitchenette so that Callie could begin to fix something for lunch. While they typically spent breakfast and lunch down stairs, dinner was always shared upstairs with Barbara and Daniel.

While they ate, Amelia chatted endlessly about all they had missed by being away. Her grandmother had clearly tried hard to keep her entertained so that she didn’t miss her moms so much while they were gone. According to the little girl, however, the best day was when Grandpa Carlos came to visit and took her out for ice cream and let her pick out anything she wanted at the toy store.

Callie made a mental note to have a talk with her father. It was only bound to get worse now that he had two granddaughters to spoil.

A little whimper followed by a full out wail broke them from their conversation, turning all eyes to the infant swing that currently held Alexia. “She’s probably hungry,” Arizona told Callie.

“You go feed her then. We’ll finish up lunch then I’ll get Amelia down for her n. a. p.”

“I know that means nap, mommy,” Amelia rolled her eyes. Sometimes their little girl was too smart for her own good.

“Yes, it does,” Callie admitted, not about to lie to her daughter. “But you’re still taking one.”

“Bummer,” Amelia groaned.

“You really need to quit picking up words from Uncle Mark,” Arizona laughed as she settled on the couch to nurse Alexia. The first time Amelia had come to the hospital to meet her baby sister Arizona had been in the middle of feeding the newborn. Callie and Arizona both tried to figure out how to explain to their little girl what Alexia was doing on Arizona’s chest. It was a conversation they barely managed to get through with a straight face.

Just as Callie was leading Amelia towards her bedroom, Barbara came down the stairs. “You girls have a visitor,” she announced.

“Who is it?” Callie asked curiously, not knowing of anyone who would even know they were back home already.

Barbara hesitated, “It’s your mom, Callie.”

“My mom? As in Lucia Torres, my mom?” Callie asked floored with the possibility. The last time she’d spoken to her mother had been the night before her wedding almost two years ago. She couldn’t imagine why the woman would be showing up now.

“Yes. And Callie, she looks really nervous,” Barbara told her. She knew what Callie must be feeling right now. Callie had been a second daughter to her for almost three years now, so protectively, she wanted to throw Lucia out on her rear. But the woman’s body language suggested that maybe things would be changing soon. “Do you want me to send her down here?”

“I um,” Callie hesitated, not knowing what to do. Looking over at Arizona, she searched her wife’s eyes for any answer. Arizona just nodded her head, letting her know she’d be there for whatever she needed. “I guess.”

“How about I take Amelia upstairs then? Want to take your nap in grandma’s bed?” Barbara asked the three-year old.

“Yes!” Amelia squealed, thinking she could easily get out of a nap with her grandmother.

“Alright go pick out a book to read,” Barbara smiled, easily reading the grin on Amelia’s face. “Don’t worry, I’ll make sure she actually falls asleep,” she told her daughters after Amelia was out of earshot.

“Um, hello?” a hesitant voice called down the stairs almost ten minutes later. Callie would recognize that voice anywhere. She could also hear the nervousness Barbara had been talking about.

“Come on down,” Callie invited, sitting beside Arizona on the couch. She checked to make sure the blanket was covering everything Arizona wouldn’t want Lucia to see. She’d tried to suggest Arizona go in the other room at least until Alexia was done eating, but her wife was determined to be there for her.

Standing at the bottom of the stairs, Lucia looked around the small space that her daughter now called home. It definitely wasn’t anything like the home they’d raised Callie in, but her daughter seemed more comfortable here than she ever did growing up. “This is nice, cozy,” she tried to compliment, not sure how to begin the conversation she wanted to have.

“We love it,” Callie told her with a hint of warning in her voice. She wasn’t about to let her mother insult the home she’d built with Arizona.

“I can see why,” Lucia told them, trying to help them see she wasn’t there to fight. She really had come to make peace with Callie, to explain about her actions over the last several years. It was way overdue.

“Why don’t you sit down,” Arizona suggested, trying to make the older woman feel more comfortable. She was hoping this would go well. She knew how much it would mean to Callie to have her mother back in her life.

“Ah, thank you,” Lucia said. She moved over to the small loveseat adjacent to the couch and hesitantly sat down so that she was barely touching the seat.

Callie and Arizona exchanged a look at how uncomfortable Lucia seemed to be, but didn’t comment. Instead they waited to see if she’d give them any indication of the reason for her visit.

Gathering her courage, she knew it was now or never. “I wanted to apologize to you both for how I’ve treated you. There are reasons for my behavior that I’m now only coming to terms with. It doesn’t make what I said and did okay. But I’m hoping if you let me explain, you’ll at least understand.”

Callie couldn’t imagine what Lucia wanted to tell them that could ever explain away her behavior. She nodded her head anyway for her mother to continue.

“Recently I’ve been going to therapy,” Lucia started, causing Callie to look at her with disbelief. The woman who raised her wasn’t one to accept she needed help for anything. “Really I have,” she told her daughter, seeing the look on her face. “Losing you was harder than I was willing to admit and I knew it was time I made a change.”

“Sorry, don’t want to interrupt, but Alexia is done eating,” Arizona said, turning to Callie so she could take the baby while she fixed herself back up. Callie slipped the baby into her arms with barely a fuss and raised her to her shoulder to burp while Arizona closed her bra and shirt back up.

Lucia watched the two girls work as one, amazed at how instinctively they knew what the other was thinking and doing. She saw wisps of dark black hair on the baby, but before she could see anything else the baby was settled on Callie’s shoulder, curling into her mother.

“Please continue,” Arizona encouraged.

“Right,” Lucia said, trying to remember what she was going to say. “There is a lot about my past that you don’t know. Things even your father doesn’t know. I’ve tried to make myself forget, but you never really forget.”

“What are you talking about?” Callie asked, her interest now peaked.

“When I was 15, I met this boy and instantly thought I was in love with him. He wasn’t exactly what your grandparents would approve of, but I thought for sure he was the love of my life. So we kept our relationship a secret and it worked for awhile. Until I got pregnant that is.”

Callie’s eyes widened at the reveal. Her mother had gotten pregnant as a teenager? Then why was she so critical of Callie for doing the same thing?

“I know what you’re thinking and that’s why I need you to listen to the whole story,” Lucia told her daughter. Callie nodded her head, showing she was ready to listen, letting her mother tell the story.

“My parents were furious when they found out I was pregnant. I thought I’d at least have Miguel, that was my boyfriend’s name, but as soon as I told him, he broke up with me and I haven’t heard from him since.”

Her story continued on as the girls sat there listening in silence. Lucia’s parents had decided the best course of action was to send her to live with an aunt. They couldn’t let anyone in their church know their daughter was pregnant. It would be such a scandal. “It was the 80’s, not the 50’s, but you wouldn’t know it by my parents’ reaction.”

Lucia had spent the next seven months with her mother’s sister, who wasn’t a very nice person, basically locked up in the house. Even though she no longer had Miguel, she looked forward to the birth of her child, loving the feel of it growing inside of her.

“The day I went into labor, my parents showed up at the hospital. They forced me to give my little girl up for adoption. I wanted to run away with my baby and never look back. The hospital handed her off to the couple my parents had handpicked before I got to say so much as a goodbye.”

“Oh my gosh, that’s so sad,” Arizona said.

Callie on the other hand was having a hard time processing what her mother was saying. Her mother had another child out there? A child she didn’t even get to hold. She couldn’t imagine someone taking Amelia or Alexia away from her without a second thought.

“When I got pregnant with you, it was bittersweet for me. I wanted you so much, but at the same time I was so scared I was going to lose you too. I tried my hardest to forget the past and just focus on you, but I know I didn’t always succeed.” Lucia paused, knowing they were just about to get to the hard stuff.

“When you told us you were pregnant, everything came rushing back. It brought up all those old memories again. And I was jealous that you got to keep your baby when I never got to keep mine,” Lucia admitted.

“I’m sorry. I can’t even imagine,” Callie told her mother honestly.

“I wasn’t dealing with my past, which is why I reacted so harshly to everything. Now that I’ve finally been working through it, I finally feel more like myself than I have since I was 15 years old. As I said earlier, I know it doesn’t make it okay, I just hope you can understand.”

Callie paused, unsure of what to say. She did have a better understanding now, but at the same time it was all still so confusing. “Okay, I can kind of understand your reaction to Amelia now. But what about Arizona and me? You were pretty nasty about that too. She’s my wife, that’s not going to change.”

“I can’t say I understand your relationship, but I do accept it. The night before your wedding when we argued, I couldn’t say it then, but I was impressed. You also really made me start to think, that night, about everything I was doing wrong.” Lucia sat there trying to decide if she should reveal the one thing she’d managed to hide for two years. “I was at your wedding. I stood hidden, so no one would see me, then hightailed it out of there when it was over. It was beautiful by the way.”

“That explains the necklace,” Callie realized out loud. Sticking her hand down her shirt, she pulled it out to show her mother she was currently wearing it. In fact she wore it more often than not, knowing it was the only tie she had to the woman sitting before them. “I’m willing to forgive and try to move past this with one stipulation. You get one chance, you hurt me, Arizona, or my kids and we’re done for good.”

“I understand,” Lucia agreed. She knew it would probably take a while for Callie to trust her again, but she hoped with time she could build a relationship with her daughter again. She’d seen how Carlos changed and she wanted the same. “Can I see her?” Lucia asked pointing at the baby sleeping in Callie’s arms. She didn’t dare ask to hold her.

“Oh, sure,” Callie said holding her up so that her mother could get a better look.

“Do you want to hold her?” Arizona asked, seeing the longing in her mother-in-law’s eyes.

“Can I?”

“Oh, um sure, I guess,” Callie responded, still not sure about her mother. Arizona put a comforting hand on her arm, telling her it was okay. As Callie scooted closer to her mother, Lucia slid back on the couch finally getting comfortable. “Here ya go. Her name is Alexia Sofia Robbins,” Callie told her, not sure if her mother knew that or not.

“She’s so beautiful,” Lucia exclaims in awe. “She looks so much like you, Callie. It’s amazing.”

In that moment Callie figured her father probably never told her mother how they had gotten pregnant. She knew her parents didn’t really talk about her these days, but they were still together. “That’s because she is mine,” Callie tells her.

“I don’t understand, Arizona’s the one that was pregnant,” Lucia says. Obviously that was so since Arizona was the one breastfeeding. Plus Carlos had told her Arizona was the one pregnant when he’d informed her of their daughter’s growing family.

“She was. But she was conceived through in vitro. It was my egg,” Callie explains.

“But she looks so much like Arizona too, especially the dimples.”

Callie turned to Arizona then, asking her if she wanted to explain the rest. They shared a silent conversation before Arizona turned back to the elder woman. “Mrs. Torres…”

“Please, call me Lucia.”

“Lucia,” Arizona says, trying it out. She never thought she’d see the day when she’d be calling her mother-in-law by name. “My brother was the sperm donor. He offered to do this for us so we could have a baby as genetically close to ours as possible. Although just so there isn’t any doubt, I don’t love Alexia any more than I love Amelia. They are both mine.”

“You don’t have to prove anything to me, I can see it with my own eyes,” Lucia smiled for the first time since she had arrived. She might not have chosen this life for her daughter, but clearly she was happy and that was all that mattered.

The three women chatted for a long time after, long after Amelia had woken up from her nap and come down to rejoin them. Lucia spent some time getting to know the little energy ball that was her granddaughter, before finally saying goodbye around dinner time. She wasn’t ready to intrude on their family time just yet. She still had a ways to go.

It wasn’t until later that night when Callie and Arizona were laying in bed that Callie realized the other truth of what Lucia had told them earlier, something that hadn’t occurred to her when her mother mentioned another child.

“I have a sister.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The rest of the story takes place 10 years after chapter 1, so just so you know, in chapter one Callie and Arizona were around 20 and Amelia was 3. In the bulk of this story Callie and Arizona are around 30/31, Amelia is 13, and Alexia is 10. There will be some flashbacks throughout this story, to fill you in on things that happened during the 10 year jump, so I’ll try to leave clues as to when about those take place as well.

**Chapter 2**

_10 years later_

Cracking the bedroom door open created a sliver of light across the two bodies snuggled together in bed. Both sound asleep, neither were yet aware of the two sets of eyes peaking in through the open doorway.

Pushing the door open a little further, four little feet made their way quietly into the room. They were almost at their goal when a loose floorboard creaked loudly through the silence.

“Sh. Lex you’re gonna wake them up,” Amelia hissed quietly at her younger sister.

“Too late,” Callie groaned and rolled onto her back, rubbing her eyes. “What are you guys doing in here at…” she looked over to the clock, “three o’clock in the morning?”

“Lex got scared because of the thunder,” Amelia explained.

“That explains her,” Arizona, now awake, pointed at their youngest, “but not you.” Another roll of thunder shook the house making Amelia jump, confirming Arizona’s assumption that Alexia wasn’t the only one frightened.

“Can we sleep with you?” Lex quickly asked, squeezing her favored teddy bear tightly in her arms.

Shifting farther from her wife, making room in the middle, Arizona threw back the covers. “Come on then.”

“Arizona!” Callie whisper-yelled. Her wife knew how she felt about their daughters sleeping in their bed, yet she was constantly allowing it.

“What? They’re scared,” she whispered back.

The two girls crawled down the middle and slid under the covers when they reached the head of the bed. Both mothers helped their children get more comfortable between them. When they were settled, Arizona wrapped her arms around Amelia and Callie did the same with Alexia. Within minutes both girls were sound asleep again, feeling safe in their mothers’ arms.

“This is all your fault you know?” Callie whispered over the girls’ heads. “If you wouldn’t have let them sleep with us when they were toddlers, they wouldn’t still want to climb into our bed.

“But they needed us, and they were so little,” Arizona reminisced.

“Yeah, well, they aren’t so little anymore,” Callie told her. “There’s not enough room in this bed for all four of us anymore.” At 13 and 10 years old, Amelia and Alexia were both continually still growing. Pretty soon they would be as tall as their mothers. Callie had started to miss when they were babies. She knew Arizona felt the same way, but neither had bothered to bring up the topic yet.

“Alright fine, we’ll discuss this being the last time, but later. We really need to get back to sleep,” Arizona told her wife around a yawn.

“Okay. Goodnight sweetheart.”

“Goodnight,” Arizona mumbled, and with that was sound asleep again.

Callie could swear she’d only just fallen back to sleep when a hand on her shoulder was trying to gently wake her.

“Hey, sorry to wake you,” Arizona whispered. “I’m being paged. Building fire, lots of kids with burns. Will you be good to get the girls to school?”

“Yeah, we’ll be fine. I don’t have to be in until nine. I’ll have plenty of time to get them both there.”

“Alright. Guess I’ll see you at work later then.”

“Text me later if it slows down, maybe we can have breakfast together,” Callie suggested.

“I will. I love you,” Arizona told her, leaning over to place a kiss on Callie’s lips.

“I love you, too. Now go be awesome.”

**~CA~**

Callie was beginning to regret telling Arizona she’d be fine to get the girls up and ready for school. Neither of their children was being particularly helpful that morning. Alexia couldn’t make up her mind between frozen pancakes or cereal for breakfast. Amelia wanted her hair braided, or maybe she should leave it down.

Callie was just about at her wits end and they’d only been awake a half hour. She was about ready to march them both next door and let Barbara deal with them. Mornings like this seemed to be her mother-in-law’s specialty.

When they’d first moved back to Seattle for Callie to start her internship, they weren’t sure where they were going to live, so they’d simply moved back in with Barbara and Daniel. About six months later the neighbors next door had announced they were moving across the country to be closer to their children.

After a few days of discussion, Callie and Arizona decided to buy the house, wanting someplace to really call their own. The house never even went on the market, instead changing hands through a private sell. Callie had never been so grateful to find a place so close to the Robbins.

Now that Callie was a Fellow and Arizona was in her last year of residency, their hours were a little more stable. But in the early days they’d relied heavily on Barbara and Daniel to make sure their children were taken care of when they couldn’t be there with them. Even though they all lived in two separate houses, they lived very much like it was one. It was how they all liked it.

Taking a deep calming breathe, Callie tried to think of what Barbara would do in this situation. “Alright here’s the deal, we’re running out of time this morning since neither of you wanted to get up this morning. Alexia you may have cereal and if you get up at a decent time tomorrow I’ll make fresh pancakes. Amelia, go get the hair ties and I’ll help you do your hair.”

“Ok, Mom,” both girls agreed, setting off in different directions.

“Those girls will surely be the death of me,” Callie muttered to the empty room.

There was never any doubt how much she loved both of her daughters. There had never been a day where she regretted either one of them, but they both sure liked to make things difficult at times.

She could still remember the day Arizona had her ultrasound to find how the sex of their second child. They had argued for weeks over whether to find out or not. In the end, because of the circumstances at the time, they decided they wanted to know. They would have loved a boy just as much, but knowing they were having a girl brought a smile to both their faces. Amelia would have the sister she had been asking for since telling her Mama was going to have a baby.

Amelia and Alexia were the best of friends much the same way Tim and Arizona had always been. They fought at times like any normal sisters would, but at the end of the day they were there for each other.

“Where’s Mama, anyway?” Lex asked around a mouthful of cereal.

“There was an emergency at the hospital early this morning. She had to go take care of some kids,” Callie finished explaining just as Amelia reentered the kitchen with hair supplies in hand. “Hop up on the bar stool,” she told her oldest child.

“Her kids okay?” Lex asked worriedly, continuing the conversation.

Callie smiled at Lex’s use of ‘her kids.’ Arizona always referred to the children on her Peds ward as her own, and their girls had picked that up from their Mama. Neither girl seemed to have any issue with Arizona’s need to take care of other children. They knew at the end of the day how much their mother loved them.

“I dunno, bug. I hope so,” Callie told Alexia. A building fire could mean a lot of seriously injured patients. She should probably stop at their favorite diner on her way to work and pick up Arizona’s favorite breakfast, just in case.

“There, all done,” Callie told Amelia, teasingly pushing her out of the stool. “Go check it out.” She’d pulled the top of Amelia’s hair up into a loose braid, leaving the bottom half free.

“Perfect,” Amelia told Callie a few minutes later, giving her mom a hug. “Think Mama will be able to French braid it tomorrow though?”

“I’m sure she’d love that,” Callie smiled. Arizona had tried to teach Callie how to do all the fancy braids she used on their daughters’ hair, but Callie had been a hopeless student. They finally gave up, deciding that hairdos would mostly fall into Arizona’s area of responsibility.

After dropping both girls off at school, Callie headed straight for Di’s Burgers to pick up some breakfast. One of the things they’d missed terribly while living out of state was being able to eat at their favorite diner. Just as she was pulling into the parking lot she received a text from Arizona telling her she should be able to share breakfast with her.

“Good morning, Diane,” Callie greeted as she walked up to the counter.

“Morning, Callie. Where’s your better half?” Di teased lightly. She was so happy to see her favorite two customers still together after all these years. She could still remember the time Callie had come in with Arizona on their first date.

“She’s at work already. Apartment building caught on fire early this morning.”

“Oh yeah, I saw that on the news earlier. Tragic,” the older woman said.

“Yes it is. Figured Arizona would need a pick-me-up. Can you get us our usual breakfasts?” Callie asked her.

“For you? Anything?” Di smiled. “Tony, get out the blueberries and double the amount in the waffle batter,” she yelled through the window into the kitchen.

“Thanks Di!” Callie winked. The first time the couple had ever come here for breakfast, Arizona had almost moaned in pleasure at Di’s waffles. When Di had come over to ask how they were, Arizona joked it could use more blueberries. So now every time they came in, Di gave her more blueberries than actual waffle, but Arizona wasn’t about to complain. She loved them like that.

“You’re welcome sweetie.”

Brown paper bag in hand, Callie made her way through the halls of Seattle Grace Hospital, headed towards the attending lounge, where she’d asked Arizona to meet her. Although the blonde wasn’t an attending yet, most let it slide when she was in there because everyone knew that she was married to Callie.

Entering the lounge, she was glad to see it void of anyone except her wife. Arizona was on one of the couches with her head on the back and her eyes closed. Sitting the bag down on the table next to the couch, she sat beside the other woman and placed a kiss on her cheek. “How was your morning?” she asked tenderly.

“Long,” was Arizona’s first response. “All my kids are still alive. But I have one little boy up in ICU, he’s only five Callie. I did everything I possibly could for him, but now we just have to see if he makes it through the night.”

“I’m so sorry, sweetheart,” Callie sympathized. She wrapped her arm around her wife’s shoulder, placing Arizona’s head on her shoulder.  “You did your best, that’s all you can do,” Callie consoled.

“I know, I just hate this job sometimes. I wonder why I ever picked Peds,” Arizona told her.

“Because you are an amazing doctor and any kid would be lucky to have you. Unfortunately you can’t save them all.”

“I know, you’re right,” Arizona agreed. “You brought me Di’s?” she asks, finally noticing the bag on the table.

“I did.”

“You are the best wife ever!” Arizona said, placing a kiss on Callie’s cheek. Her mood rising, but not all the way gone.

“I figured you could use a little treat today. It was Di’s idea to add a cup of blueberries on the side though,” Callie tells her as she begins pulling their meal out of the bag.

“Sounds like her,” Arizona laughs. “How about I get us some coffee, while you finish setting the food out?”

“Sounds good to me.” Although the stuff in the coffee pot wouldn’t be as good as the stuff at the cart downstairs, it would be better than nothing. Neither of them thought they’d ever be coffee drinkers, but after their first few years of residency they realized it was often times the only way to get through a late night or early morning.

“So I was thinking…” Callie began once they were both seated. “Tomorrow is Friday and baring any emergency we both should be getting off at a decent time.”

“Yeah…” Arizona encouraged her to continue, not knowing where she was going with that.

“It’s been awhile since we’ve had a date night,” Callie told her.

“Ah,” Arizona said. “That sounds good to me.” Callie was right, it had been some time since their schedules allowed for them to spend some quality time together that wasn’t with two very energetic girls. “I’m sure my parents won’t mind either.”

“Actually, I was thinking this would be the perfect opportunity to start giving them a little freedom.” Callie could see the look Arizona was giving her, clearly saying no way am I ready for those girls to be home alone all the time. “I’m not saying I’m ready for them to be alone when we’re working. But this would be more like a trial run to see how they are doing. We’ll only be a phone call away and you parents will be right next door.”

“Yeah, that wouldn’t be so bad I guess. We can’t just run home when we’re at work, but going out for a couple hours should be fine. I know we’re a little over-protective,” Arizona added.

“According to Amelia, that’s the understatement of the year. Most of her friends are home alone for several hours every day after school.” Callie should know, she’d heard that argument from their daughter no less than ten times.

“I’m not ready for our babies to become latch-key kids,” Arizona said sadly. Growing up her mom had always been home when she got home from school. She knew eventually it would happen for her kids though, since neither Callie nor she wanted to be stay-at-home moms.

“Me either. And Amelia doesn’t really understand yet that our jobs are different than most of her friends’ parents. They get to come home on time every day. But we do need to start trusting them a little more. Even when we are working your mother will always be right next door, or a phone call away.”

“That’s true. And knowing our girls they’d get bored and head over there anyway.”

Callie laughed, knowing how true that was. Even when Callie and Arizona were home during the day, one or both girls often ended up at their grandparents’ house. They were used to having their grandma around to talk to and tell all their silly little jokes too. “So we’re agreed? We let them test out being home alone?”

“I still don’t like it, but yeah, we’re agreed,” Arizona conceded.

“Good. And I can’t wait to have my beautiful wife all to myself for a few hours,” Callie purred, kissing Arizona quickly on the lips.

“Mmm. Me either,” Arizona agreed, attacking Callie’s lips in a much deeper kiss.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

“Absolutely no friends over while we’re gone,” Arizona told her daughters, looking them both square in the eye. She still couldn’t believe they were doing this, leaving the girls home alone for the very first time. She knew they were old enough to take care of themselves for a couple of hours, but it was so hard to let go. She’d seen too many horrible accidents in the ER.

“You already told us that Mama,” Amelia said, rolling her eyes. She didn’t see what the big deal was. Their grandparents lived right next door. It’s not like they could throw some big party without their mothers finding out, not that they would anyway.

For the most part Amelia and Alexia were well-behaved children. They pretty much always did what they were told without complaining. They had manners and were polite to those around them. They, of course, had their off days, or days were they misbehaved, but overall they were good kids.

Arizona wrapped Amelia in a tight hug first, then did the same to Alexia. “You’re my baby girls,” she told them with a tear in her eye. “I’m not sure I’m ready for this.”

“We’ll be fine, Mama,” Amelia tried to reassure. Both of their mothers could be a little over-protective at times, and the girls understood it. They spent time in the hospital from time-to-time and had seen some of the bad things that can happen. “It’s only a couple hours, and grandma and grandpa are right next door. You don’t need to worry.”

“I’ll always worry about you, even when you’re married and have your own families,” Arizona admitted. “That’s just part of being your mom.”

“Arizona, quit torturing our kids,” Callie admonished as she joined her family in the living room. Wrapping her arms around her wife, she pulled her in close. “We need to leave soon if we want to make our reservations,” she whispered in the blonde’s ear.

“Okay, okay. I’ll stop now,” Arizona conceded.

“Good,” Callie said, placing a quick kiss on her wife’s lips. Turning to the girls, “There are plenty of leftovers in the fridge if you get hungry.”

“Can we order a pizza?” Amelia asked instead.

“No way,” Arizona said at the same time Callie said, “I’m sure that will be fine.”

“Then they’d have to open the door, to a stranger,” Arizona pointed out, already having given the girls a lecture on not opening the door for anyone.

“It’s just the pizza delivery guy. Some kid who probably isn’t much older than them,” Callie pointed out.

“But we can’t be sure of that,” Arizona argued.

“Alright fine,” Callie started, heading towards her purse to pull out some money. “When the pizza guy gets here, call your grandparents, tell them that your crazy mother wants them to stay on the line while you pay him to make sure he’s not a serial killer.”

“Not funny, Callie,” Arizona pouted.

“They will be fine,” Callie said, stressing each word. “Don’t forget to leave enough money for a tip,” she told the girls, handing Amelia more than enough cash to get a pizza and some breadsticks. “Be good, we love you,” she finished, giving them each a giant hug.

“Love you Mommy,” Lex told Callie. “Love you, Mama,” she said, hugging Arizona again.

“Be good,” Arizona repeated Callie, finally conceding that they were really doing this.

“We will,” Amelia promised.

“Goodbye girls,” Callie told them, slowly pulling her wife towards the door. She wasn’t about to let Arizona find another reason for them to stay longer.

**~CA~**

“Oh, Calliope,” Arizona squealed in excitement when she realized what restaurant they were going to. She had wanted to try the new Italian place that opened up just a few months ago, but they hadn’t found recently. “I’ve been dying to eat here.”

“I know,” Callie smiled.

“You are too good to me,” Arizona told her, leaning over the console to place a kiss on her wife’s lips.

“Not possible,” Callie denied. Pulling up to the valet, she climbed out of the car, while the young man helped Arizona out. Once they were both standing side by side, Callie took one of Arizona’s hand into her own, entwining their fingers. She loved the feel of Arizona’s skin on her own, no matter the context. More than ten years of marriage and she was still as crazy about her wife as the day they married. Some days she couldn’t believe she was lucky enough to meet her soul-mate in high school.

Once they were finally seated, the two women looked over their menus slowly, stealing glances at each other from time to time. “What are you going to have?” Callie asked quietly.

“I don’t know there’s so much to choose from,” Arizona said in wonder. Everything on the menu sounded amazing.

“Ladies, may I start you off with something to drink,” their waiter asked, appearing by their table. Ordering a glass of wine for each of them, they asked what dishes he recommended and decided to go with two of the house specials, vowing to come back and try other things another day.

As they waited for their food, they shared little details about their day, what cases they were working on and some of the gossip around the hospital. The conversation flowed easily even after their food was delivered. Neither woman ever tired of listening to the other talk.

“There’s something I wanted to talk to you about,” Callie said slowly at one point. “Something I didn’t want little ears, or nosey ears around to hear,” she added, referencing their children and their gossipy co-workers.

“What’s that?” Arizona asked, giving Callie her full attention.

“Well the girls are getting older now, and we’re more settled into our careers. I mean I’m an attending now, and in a few months you’ll be taking your boards. We’re pretty much as settled as we’re ever going to be,” she rambled.

“I suppose…” Arizona responded, leaving it open for her wife to get on with it.

Callie took a deep breath, preparing herself for what she wanted to say next. “I’ve been thinking about having another baby.”

“You want more kids?” Arizona asked surprised.

“Well yeah. I thought that was always the plan,” Callie answered.

Arizona nodded her head in agreement. Back when they had gotten pregnant with Alexia, they’d discussed the idea of more children some day. But then ten years went by and neither had ever brought it up. She kind of just came to the assumption that their family would stay the way it was.

“Do you not want more?” Callie asked with a bit of uncertainty in her voice. She was happy with the family they had now and she would continue to be if Arizona didn’t want anymore. But at the same time she really wanted a chance to carry a child that she and Arizona created together. She loved taking care of Arizona while she was pregnant with Lex, but she had been so alone while pregnant with Amelia. She wanted to know what it was like to have Arizona there beside her. And she really wanted to hold another baby in her arms.

“No, no, it’s not that,” Arizona quickly reassured. “I just haven’t given it a lot of thought. We’ve been so busy lately, there really hasn’t been time to sit down and think about it. I’m very open to the idea, but I think it’s something we should really discuss.”

“I agree,” Callie told her. “We kind of rushed into it the last time. Not that I’ve ever regretted Lex, but we didn’t really stop and think about it either.”

Twirling her pasta in her fork, moving it around her plate, Arizona stared at what remained of her food. Setting her fork down, she ran a hand through her hair, her face one of deep thought. “You’re right, we didn’t,” she agreed. Having two kids so young was a much harder task than they’d thought it would be, especially once Arizona returned to school shortly after Alexia’s first birthday.

_Arizona had been back in school for just over a month now. It was proving to be harder than she thought to get back into the swing of classes after having taken a year off. She terribly missed sharing classes with her wife as well. At least then they could do all their work together and get it done fairly quickly. Now they were stuck doing all of their work separately._

_Trying to take care of two kids and do school work was also proving to be difficult. At least they had Arizona’s parents to help out some, but they were both still wanted to be their children’s primary care givers._

_Knowing Callie only had one class this morning and had now been home with the girls all afternoon, Arizona was really hoping to hole herself up in their bedroom when she got home and write her biology._

_However, the sight that greeted Arizona as she stepped into the basement stopped her in her tracks. There were tears in Callie’s eyes as she paced around the living room floor. Alexia was tucked in her arms, with only a diaper on and crying as well. Sounds from the other room suggested they weren’t the only ones upset about something. Amelia was clearly throwing a temper tantrum in her room._

_Apparently her paper would have to be put on hold for the time being. “Callie, what’s going on?” she asked softly._

_“Arizona, your home. Thank god,” Callie exclaimed. “I don’t know if she’s got more teeth coming in or if she’s coming down with something, but Lex is burning up and she’s been crying for close to an hour now I think. I can’t seem to get her to calm down. Amelia started to get frustrated with all the crying and started lashing out so I yelled at her and sent her to her room, but I know I shouldn’t have, I know it’s not her fault.”_

_Now she knew why Callie was so upset. They’d never yelled at Amelia before. If she was acting out or causing trouble, they’d sit her down and try to get to the root of the problem. So far it had worked really well._

_“Alright, hand me Lex. You go talk to Amelia,” Arizona offered. It was the best solution since Callie was the one that needed to make peace with Amelia._

_Taking Lex from Callie proved to be harder than they thought. The little girl balled her fists into Callie’s shirt determined not to let go. “Come on, sweetie. Come to Mama,” Arizona encouraged, gently prying Alexia’s fingers opened, and taking her in to her arms. Alexia was definitely more of a mommy’s girl, just like Amelia was more of a mama’s girl._

_“Shh, it’s okay, sweetheart,” she soothed, bouncing the girl softly in her arms. Callie was right, she was really hot. “Did you give her any Tylenol?”_

_Callie was about to angrily retort that of course she had, but before she could, reason calmed her. Arizona wasn’t accusing her. She was simply asking if she needed to do it. The whole day had messed with her emotions something fierce. She needed to calm down before she went in to talk to Amelia. “Yeah, I gave her some about half hour ago. It should be kicking in soon I hope,” Callie finally answered._

_“Alright. I’ll take her upstairs, give you some peace and quiet with Amelia.”_

_“Thank you.”_

_“No need to thank me,” Arizona dismissed. “We’re partners. We take care of these things together.”Callie nodded her head in agreement._

_Running her hand soothingly across Alexia’s back, Arizona turned back towards the stairs, making her way up. The little girls sobs were starting to slow down, but she was still a very upset little girl. “Come on, sweetie. Let’s go see what grandma is up to. She must be up in her craft room since she apparently didn’t hear all the fuss you guys were making,” Arizona told her little girl, using her voice to try and calm Lex down._

_Her mother was right where she suspected she was. After the basement was finished and they all moved into their little apartment, Barbara had turned Callie and Arizona’s old room into a craft room. “Here see, there’s grandma,” Arizona told her daughter._

_“What’s going on?” Barbara asked, seeing her granddaughters red face._

_“Someone’s not feeling so good so she was giving Mommy a hard time when I got home,” Arizona answered._

_“Poor baby,” Barbara said softly, pushing her chair back so she could take the baby from Arizona._

_By the time she was tucked in Barbara’s arms, Lex was sound asleep. Arizona sighed in relief, crashing down in the other chair in the room. She knew as soon as Lex woke from her nap, it might just start all over again._

“We jumped right into trying last time and you got pregnant on the first try, there was really no in between,” Callie said, pulling Arizona from her memories. “This time around I think we need a little more discussion before we get to that point.”

“I agree. There are more factors to consider this time too. How it will affect the girls, our jobs. It’s probably not going to be as easy either. We’re older now,” Arizona pointed out.

“Very true,” Callie agreed. Reaching across the table, Callie took Arizona’s hand into her own. “But I really want to carry another baby. One we created together.”

“I’m definitely into that idea. I’ve always wanted to see you pregnant,” Arizona smirked. All she had right now was the pictures in her head of what Callie might have looked like while pregnant with Amelia. She couldn’t wait to see the real thing.

They spent the remainder of their meal discussing the pros and cons of another baby, when they should tell the girls during the process and how much to tell them. Amelia was in junior high now so it was likely she knew a bit about human reproduction. They’d never tried to hide anything from their girls, but they knew there was a time and place for certain discussions.

As they headed home that night, they both had smiles on their faces thinking about the possibilities of the future.

Pulling into the driveway, Arizona was the first one out of the car, wanting to make sure their daughters were just fine, the earlier conversation now far from her mind. Walking into the living room, she couldn’t help the smile on her face to see her two girls both sound asleep on the couch, the TV still playing whatever movie they were watching.

“Why don’t you clean up down here, and I’ll get them both up to bed,” Callie suggested when she finally caught up with Arizona. There were remnants of their girls pigging out all over the living room.

“Are you sure?” While Lex was getting pretty big, she was still light enough that they could carry her up to bed. Amelia was a whole other story.

“Yeah, I’ll be fine,” Callie assured. She broke bones for a living after all. She was a little bit stronger than her wife, although she’d never outright tell her that. She knew it would only give Arizona reason to bring out the pout.

Arizona first straightened up the living room, then went to work on the kitchen. Once the last dish was in the dishwasher, she turned it on, letting it run overnight. She’d make sure to have the girls empty it in the morning. Flipping off the light, she headed up the stairs, all the while wondering what changes were going to come their way.


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

With a very satisfied smile, Arizona rolled off her wife, curled into Callie’s side. Once she caught her breath, she looked up into deep brown eyes. Callie’s head dipped to place a light kiss on Arizona’s lips.

“I’m so glad we decided to nix the no sex in the hospital rule,” Callie smirked.

“That was the dumbest idea I ever had,” Arizona admitted.

“Definitely,” Callie agreed. Although Arizona had her reasons at the time, neither one of them could remember what they were.

_Dr. Calliope Robbins walked through the halls of Seattle Grace with a bounce in her step. Today was going to be an excellent day. She was finally a resident and her wife was now an intern. They would finally get to spend time together again._

_The last year had been a hard one for the couple, trying to make it through Callie’s internship, Arizona’s last year of medical school, and take care of their two daughters, who were now both in school. They’d barely had time to see each other. She couldn’t remember the last time they’d shared more than a few kisses before crashing into bed exhausted._

_This year would be another hard one with Arizona now being the intern, but at least they’d get to see each other around the hospital. She was on her way now to greet all of the new interns for and find out which ones were assigned to her. Since many of the surgeons already knew of their marital status, she wasn’t holding out hope that she’d get put on the same service as Arizona. Especially since they were interested in different specialties._

_Turning the corner towards the nurses’ station where the interns were waiting, she immediately spotted familiar blonde hair in a line of over a dozen interns. Her body was begging her to walk up to her wife, grab her ass, and place a kiss on her neck, but her mind told her what a bad idea that was._

_Spotting Mark, she moved around the interns, sending a quick wink to her wife when their eyes connected, and took a spot beside her friend. Mark graduated college with Callie, but had gone off to a different medical school and they’d lost touch. So she’d been more than a little surprised to see Mark her first day of internship._

_Mark and Lexie had managed to maintain their relationship over the years, and were recently engaged. She was currently standing beside Arizona as one of the other new interns._

_“Our women look good in scrubs,” Mark whispered to Callie._

_Her eyes never leaving her wife, “That they do,” she agreed. All she could think about was getting Arizona alone and tearing that lab coat and those scrubs right off her body._

_“Get your head out of the gutter, Callie,” Mark snickered._

_“Shut up,” she grumbled, trying to focus on what Dr. Bailey was telling the interns. Callie had worked with a lot of surgeons in the hospital, but she was never more excited than on the days she got to work under Dr. Bailey and Dr. Altman, the two women who had saved her daughter’s life. She knew Arizona was equally as excited to work with Dr. Bailey, her own focus being pediatrics. “Besides, I’m sure you’re thinking the same thing about Lexie.”_

_Knowing his friend was right, Mark kept his mouth shut._

_Callie was barely able to mutter a quick a hello to her wife before they were both pulled in different directions. As the day drug on and they still didn’t get to see each other, Callie was starting to wonder if she’d called it wrong. This was only Arizona’s first shift and it wouldn’t always be so hectic she tried to tell herself._

_When the end of her shift finally rolled around and there was no case holding her at the hospital, she smiled once again and headed towards her locker to change. Her smile faltered when she remembered Arizona wouldn’t be coming home with her because she would be working until sometime tomorrow._

_Switching directions, she quickly went in search of the other woman, wanting to at least see her and wish her luck. “Hey, Lexie, have you seen Arizona?” Callie asked her friend._

_“It’s kind of slow right now so she said she was going to try and find some place to rest for a few minutes. Try the on-call rooms,” Lexie suggested._

_Callie thanked her before continuing her search. An empty on-call room could be perfect to steal a few moments. The first two rooms she tried held no sign of her wife, the third one was locked and she received a loud, manly “go away” at her knock._

_She headed up the stairs to the next set of on-call rooms. She was about to lose hope when she finally spotted a familiar face on one of the bunk beds. Sneaking quietly into the room, she made sure Arizona was the only occupant before locking the door behind her._

_Tip-toeing to the bed, she leaned down, torn between waking her wife up or letting her rest. She knew the other woman needed the sleep if she was going to get through her shift. At the same time, she really needed some time with her if she was going to be spending the night in their bed alone._

_“Don’t worry about it, I’m awake,” Arizona whispered, startling Callie._

_“I’m sorry, I just didn’t want to head home without wishing you a good night,” Callie told her._

_“Seeing you is better than some missing sleep,” Arizona smiled, scooting back on the bed so Callie could join her._

_“You’re going to rethink that at three in the morning when you’re stuck suturing some drunk guys hand, wishing you could take a nap,” Callie teased, kissing Arizona lightly on the lips. “Mmm, I’ve missed you.”_

_“Missed you too,” Arizona admitted, kissing Callie again._

_Several innocent kisses quickly turned into a full-on make-out session. Rolling on top of Arizona, Callie kissed her even harder, pressing their bodies tightly together. “I want you so much,” she whispered, moving to take her shirt off._

_Arizona stopped and pulled away, halting Callie from her goal. “I don’t think that’s such a good idea.”_

_“Why not?” Callie questioned, feeling more than a little disappointed._

_“Because, sex in the hospital is a bad idea to begin with. This is our workplace, not our home. And besides you’re a resident, I’m an intern.”_

_“So! We’re married,” Callie argued. It’s not like Arizona was sleeping with her boss to get favors. They were wives. They had a home and family together._

_“It’s my first day. What kind of impression will that make? I just don’t think it’s a good idea,” Arizona explained._

_Callie groaned, lying back down next to Arizona. She knew she wasn’t going to win. When Arizona had her mind made up, it was hard to change it._

_“No sex in the hospital. Agreed?”_

_“Agreed,” Callie mumbled. She briefly wondered if she’d get to touch her wife in the next year, but before she could say anything Arizona’s pager went off._

_“Guess I’ll see you tomorrow,” Arizona told her, climbing over Callie and off the bed. Giving her wife one last kiss, she was out the door._

_“Stupidest idea she ever had,” Callie moaned to the empty room._

“Do you have any idea how horny I was that day?” Callie asked, pulling herself from the memory.

“You? What about me? I still had like 15 hours of my shift left. At least you got to go home and take care of yourself. And don’t even deny that you didn’t do just that at the first opportunity,” Arizona quickly added. They’d been married 12 years, she knew Callie as well as she knew herself.

“I most certainly did not,” Callie denied. “I had two little girls that needed help with homework and then I had to fix dinner and get them to bed.”

“And as soon as they were asleep and you were in our bed…”

“I fell right to sleep,” Callie lied, knowing Arizona wouldn’t believe her. That day may have been almost five years ago, but she could remember every night they spent apart, because on those nights it was always hard to sleep.

“Liar,” Arizona teased, kissing Callie quickly before sliding off of the bed to get her scrub top. The two women had barely managed to pull their scrubs off before they were making each other come, bras and panties still in place.

Callie smirked, “You love me anyway.”

“That, I definitely do,” Arizona answered. Picking up Callie’s top off of the floor, she threw it at her partner. “Now get dressed. We need to get back out there before someone realizes we’re both missing… again,” she added. It wouldn’t be the first time they’d been caught, and it likely wouldn’t be the last either. All these years together and they were still just as into each other as they’d always been.

“We still haven’t had a chance to talk about our maybe baby,” Callie said as she pulled on her pants, tying them back in place.

Running her hands through her hair, Arizona was really wishing there was a mirror in here. She worried about leaving the on-call room with sex hair. “I know, I know. Maybe tonight? If we both get home at a decent hour,” Arizona offered. It had been two weeks since their date night and they hadn’t had more than a few moments alone. “Or maybe not,” Arizona groaned as her pager went off, shortly followed by Callie’s.

“ER?” Callie asked as she looked down her at pager.

“ER,” Arizona confirmed, shutting off her own.

“Maybe we get a case together,” Callie commented.

“Or maybe it’s all hands on deck,” Arizona countered as she unlocked the door and led the way to the elevators.

Several minutes later they entered the ER together and were immediately stopped by one of the new interns. Neither of them could remember the young guys name. “What do we got?” Arizona asked him.

“Five-year old boy fell on the playground. He’s in a lot of pain and looks like he may have a broken femur.”

“May have? Did you order an x-ray, Dr…” Callie trailed off, trying to remember his name.

“Thompson, Dr. Thompson,” he quickly filled in. “And no I didn’t.”

“Why not?” Callie asked angrily. Interns seemed to get more incompetent by the year.

“The mother hasn’t made it here yet. Apparently she had to go out of town for the day and we haven’t been able to get a hold of her. The nanny was the one to bring him in,” Dr. Thompson informed them.

“Did you ask her if she could make medical decisions?” When the young man shook his head no Callie grumbled and headed for the bed the intern had pointed out. Before she could even pull back the curtain, she could hear the little boy’s wails. He was obviously in a great deal of pain.

“Hey there cutie,” Arizona greeted the little boy in a soothing manner. “I’m Dr. Arizona and this is Dr. Robbins and we’re here to make you feel better. What’s your name?” As predicted when they got married, having two Dr. Robbins in one hospital got a little confusing, so Arizona had adopted using her first name instead.

“Nicky,” the boy sniffled.

“Nicky, nice to meet you. I know you’re in a lot of pain and we’ll make it better just as soon as we can,” Arizona promised.

Callie gave the boy a smile before turning to the young brunette in the room. She couldn’t have been more than 25 at the most. “Are you allowed to make medical decisions in the mother’s absence?”

“Oh yes, of course. I have the paperwork if you need to see it,” she offered reaching for her purse.

“Not at this moment, although keep it handy in case we need to place it in his file,” Callie suggested. “We need to get him x-rayed. We’ll know more once we get the scans. What is your name?”

“Oh sorry, I’m Holly. And do whatever you have to,” the nanny told them.

“Alright, Dr. Thompson get this boy up to radiology and page us when you get the scans back,” Callie told the intern. Turning back to Holly, “We’ll come speak to you when we have a better idea about our course of treatment.”

The next time they spoke to Holly was over an hour later. Based on the scans, they felt the best course of action was surgery to try and correct the break. Casting would be decided later, depending on the outcome of the operation.

“I got a hold of his mother. She says to go ahead with whatever you think is best. She should be back within the next hour though hopefully,” Holly told them.

“Should we put off surgery until she gets here?” Arizona asked both Callie and Holly.

“No, no,” Holly quickly shook her head. “She wouldn’t want that. She’d want to see him getting fixed up as soon as possible.”

“Alright, we’ll get him prepped then. Have one of the nurses tell us when she gets here and I’ll come out and give both of you an update,” Arizona offered. She felt bad Nicky’s mother wasn’t there, but knew if it was her own daughters she wouldn’t want them to suffer longer than they had to either.

“Looks like we do get to work together,” Callie smiled, as she and Arizona headed off to prepare for surgery. They hadn’t gotten to work a case together in a while. It was too bad because their connection made them a powerful team.

About half way into the procedure, a nurse came to inform them that Nicky’s mother had finally arrived. Scrubbing out, Arizona made her way through the halls toward the waiting room. She stopped suddenly, not expecting the woman who was sitting next to Holly. A face she would recognize anywhere.

Shaking it off, she stepped into the room and quickly introduced herself to Nicky’s mom and updated her on her son’s surgery. “We should be done in about an hour or so and we’ll let you know more then,” she finished.

Scrubbing back in, Arizona took her place across from her wife once again. She gave a few vague answers to Callie’s questions about her chat with Nicky’s mother. She didn’t want anything to take Callie focus.

Closing Nicky up, the two scrubbed out together, but before Callie could leave the room Arizona grabbed her arm. “There’s something I need to tell you about Nicky’s mom.”

“What is it?” Callie asked without much concern.

Arizona wasn’t sure how to tell her wife, but she needed to know. If she hadn’t of been sure her wife was in surgery, she would have thought she was talking to her in that waiting room. They were almost identical. Which only left one possibility in Arizona’s mind. “I think she might be your sister.”


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Callie stared at her wife for just a moment, trying to process what she’d just said. “Sister? What sister? I don’t have a…” she trailed off as realization suddenly dawned on her. “Oh, you mean…” she paused, not sure what she wanted to come out of Arizona’s mouth just then.

“Yes, I think she’s the baby your mom put up for adoption,” Arizona confirmed. She knew Callie had a million questions but at the same time was too in shock to ask any of them. “Honey, if I didn’t know you were in that operating room a little bit ago, I would have sworn you were the one sitting there beside Holly in the waiting room,” she explained.

Callie just nodded in understanding. Running a hand through her hair, she tried to decide what her next move should be. “Well regardless of who she is to me, she still needs an update on her son, so let’s get that part over with,” Callie finally decided, taking a few tentative steps in the direction they had been walking previously.

Falling in beside her wife, Arizona took Callie’s hand and gave it a gentle squeeze, reminding her that she would always be there to support her. Gone was the bounce in the older woman’s step, the bounce she always had after a successful surgery. It was replaced by an almost trepidation as they made their way around the final corner that would lead them straight to the surgical waiting room.

Pausing just outside the door, Callie glanced around the room, studying the faces of each of the loved ones waiting for news. In the back, left corner Callie found the woman she was looking for. Instantly she could see what Arizona had been talking about. Not only did they have the same hair and complexion, but they also had similar eyes and nose.

Growing up, Callie had plenty of opportunities to observe her parents’ behavior. Always pushed to the background, she had nothing better to do than watch her parents from afar. If there was one thing beyond looks that was familiar, it was this woman’s demeanor. It screamed Lucia Torres. She wasn’t sure how that was even possible, but there it was, plain as day.

Slipping into doctor mode, Callie stepped through the doorway with confidence and moved towards the anxious mother. “Mrs. Fernandez?”

The woman snapped her head up at the call, quickly moving toward the two waiting doctors. “Is my son okay?”

“Nicky will be just fine,” Callie assured. “The surgery went smoothly. They are just getting him set up in his room and then you can see him. I would like to keep him here a week or two to keep his leg up in traction until we’re sure its healing properly.”

“Thank you so much, Dr…” Mrs. Fernandez trailed off.

“Robbins,” Callie easily supplied. “You’re very welcome, Mrs. Fernandez.”

“Please, it’s Aria,” The older woman offered. “I’m not married.”

 _Aria. Aria Fernandez_. The name rolls around in Callie’s mind. She has a sister and her name is Aria. She was standing before her in the flesh. Everything seemed so surreal in that moment. “Yes, well, if you have any more questions Dr. Arizona would be happy to answer them,” Callie quickly said, making a quick exit.

Arizona watched her wife walk away. She wanted to follow her, she knew Callie wasn’t okay, but she had a child’s family to take care of first. She was unaware that Aria was doing the same exact thing.

“She knows who I am, doesn’t she?” Aria asked softly, breaking Arizona out of her thoughts.

Turning back around to look at the woman who looked so much like her partner, “I’m sorry?”

“I couldn’t help but notice how you looked at her. I also noticed your nametag, Arizona is your first name, not your last,” Aria explained, pointing at the tag on Arizona’s lab coat.

“Yes, she’s my wife,” Arizona confirmed. There really was no use in lying about it. “And yes, she knows who you are. I’m guessing you know who she is too.”

“Not really. My mother died last year,” Aria started, accepting Arizona’s condolences when offered. “After the funeral I was cleaning out her stuff and found the adoption papers. So how am I related to her?”

Arizona wasn’t sure it was her place to answer this woman’s questions. But Callie was clearly in no position to talk to Aria. “She’s your sister. I mean assuming you are the one her mother gave up for adoption, but the evidence is pretty compelling,” Arizona smiled, pointedly looking Aria over. The part of Arizona that was Callie’s wife firmly believed this was Callie’s long lost sister, but the doctor in her they couldn’t be certain without a DNA test.

 “Yes, it is,” Aria agreed, her voice trailing off as they both stood awkwardly looking at each other.

“I should go check on her,” Arizona said, pointing a thumb in the direction Callie had gone.

“Yes, of course. I’m really anxious to see my son anyway.”

“Oh yes, of course,” Arizona agreed, suddenly remembering why they were all there in the first place. “Just head straight down that hallway, it’ll take you right to the pediatric department. There should be a nurse at the desk that will take you to his room.”

“Thank you, again.”

Putting on her super magic smile, “You’re very welcome,” Arizona told her, before heading off in search of her wife.

**~CA~**

Hours later, Arizona entered her darkened home, completely exhausted from the day. Before she could find Callie and check on her, her pager had gone off, prompting Arizona, once again, to the ER. She spent the remainder of her shift practically glued to the operating rooms. By the time she was able to head home it was long past her daughters’ bedtime.

Walking quietly through the house, she stopped in each of the girls’ rooms, placing a kiss on their foreheads. She hated when she went a whole day without seeing either of their smiling faces.

As softly as she could, she opened her bedroom door. She didn’t want to wake Callie if she was already asleep. She wasn’t shocked to find her wife wide-awake on their bed. Neither of the women slept very well without the other, and with the events of the day, she figured sleep wouldn’t come easily to the other woman.

“Hey sweetheart,” Arizona greeted softly as she moved to sit beside her wife on their bed. “How are you doing?”

“I, um, I’m not really sure,” Callie admitted honestly. Over the last ten years there had been moments here and there where she’d wondered about the child her mother had given up. In the back of her mind she’d decided they would probably never really know what happened to that baby.

Seeing Aria in that waiting room was a complete shock. She kept trying to tell herself it was just one of those freaky coincidences that happened sometimes, two strangers who looked alike. And if her mother had never told her of her past she would have simply waved it off as exactly that.

“Aria told me she found out last year that she was adopted,” Arizona started gently, hoping she could get Callie to open up.

“You talked to her about this?” Callie ground out angrily.

“Only for a minute, and only because she asked me,” Arizona explained. “She connected our names, figured I’d know why you disappeared on her so quickly.”

Callie let out a deep sigh, closed her eyes and pulled herself together. She had no right to get mad at Arizona for saying anything. She was the one that walked away from Aria. Of course it wouldn’t have escaped the other woman’s attention of how much they looked alike. “I just…” she paused, trying to organize her thoughts. “I couldn’t talk to her. I guess I didn’t want to hear anything that would further prove she’s my sister.”

Arizona wrapped Callie in her arms, laying her wife’s head on her shoulder. “I know sweetie. You don’t have to explain yourself to me. There’s no right or wrong reaction to this.”

“This is all so confusing. Where do I go from here? Do I just pretend that she’s no one to me, discharge her son, and never see her again? Do I act all nice and just accept her into my life like she’s always been there?” At this point Callie was more or less thinking out loud so Arizona just let her continue to talk. There really isn’t anything she could say that would change the outcome either way.

“I don’t have a sister. I’m an only child. I’ve always been an only child. It would have been nice to have a sibling growing up. At least then I would’ve had someone to talk to at home that wasn’t a paid employee. I’m almost 31 years old, too old to suddenly have a sister.”

Arizona kissed Callie on the forehead and maneuvered them so that they were both lying down now. She figured she was going to be in for a long night. She had actually expected a reaction like this from Callie after Lucia’s reveal, but that day never came. Apparently Callie needed the physical evidence to finally make it real for her.

Callie continued to rant for another half-hour, her thoughts getting harder and harder to follow with each sentence. Arizona tried to keep up with her, but after awhile just decided to play along and wait for her wife to tire herself out.

“Do I tell mom?” Callie suddenly asked, really looking to Arizona for an answer for the first time.

“I can’t really tell you the answer to that. I think that would be something you might want to ask Aria first. She might be having a hard time with this as well,” Arizona reasoned.

Callie knew her wife was right. She had no idea what Aria was thinking at this moment. At the same time she didn’t know if she could keep this quiet from her mother either. While she still didn’t have the relationship with Lucia that she had with Barbara, the two Torres women had come a long way from where they’d been during Callie’s high school years.

Lucia didn’t exactly go out of her way to check up on the little Robbins family, but she did make sure to invite them to events and holidays and often sent messages to them through Carlos. One would never give her the grandmother of the year award, but she did love her granddaughters and spent time with them on occasion.

Although the few times she made an effort to really spend time with them outside of family gatherings, were shopping trips. While Amelia and Alexia were typical girls and enjoyed shopping, Callie and Arizona had raised them conservatively, taught them that just because they weren’t hurting for money, didn’t mean they needed to go hog wild. This was the complete opposite of how Lucia Torres liked to spend.

“I don’t want to think about this anymore. Let’s talk about something else,” Callie suggested.

“Like what?”

For the first time that night, Callie had a glint in her eye. “A baby.”

Arizona laughed. She fell right into that one, not that she’d ever deny her wife anything that made her happy. Honestly she was more than happy to have another baby. They really just needed to work out the details. “Talk away,” Arizona smiled.

“I want to be pregnant again, to feel that life inside me. When we had Lex I was in no way ready to be pregnant again. Having Amelia like I did scared me. I’m not scared anymore and I want to do it again, and I want to do it with you. To have a baby with you.”

“You don’t have to sell me on the idea. I’m already sold,” Arizona told her. Placing a hand on Callie’s belly, she gave it a gentle rub, smiling at the idea of their baby being in there.

“Do you still want to do it the same way we did with Lex? My egg, Tim’s sperm?” Callie asked. She wouldn’t mind the chance to truly carry Arizona’s baby, having a cute little blonde running around, but she knew that wasn’t important to the other woman.

Arizona rolled to her side, looking at Callie more seriously. “I always thought that was the plan for any children we had.”

“Yes it was. But we made that plan ten years ago. There’s always a possibility you’d change your mind. Want a baby that looked like you,” Callie pointed out.

“Alexia does look like me. We might not have the same hair or complexion, but she has my dimples, my smile, and against all odds even got my blue eyes. And no one could say Amelia isn’t mine, that girl has my facial expressions down cold,” Arizona stated proudly.

“This is very true,” Callie agreed. It was almost aggravating how much Amelia acted like Arizona because when she pulled out those faces it was hard for Callie to say no to her about anything. “Alright, same game plan as before it is. I do have one question though.”

“On how to make a baby? And here I thought you were a doctor,” Arizona teased, placing a quick kiss on Callie’s lips.

“Not that ya goof. Do you think we need to tell Tim? I’m not really sure what the protocol here is.”

“I’m not either. Last time we had to because we needed his help. But now we have a nice little supply at the sperm bank waiting for us to use,” the blonde stated. It was always a little weird talking about sperm, especially in reference to her brother’s. At the same time it gave her Alexia, so she was forever grateful for that.

“It could be a little weird this time too. Before, Tim was single, but this time there’s Megan and JoJo to consider,” Callie pointed out.

Arizona let out a huge grin at the thought of her little nephew. She had begun to think that her brother was never going to find someone to settle down with. Then, almost three years ago, he brought Megan home for Thanksgiving. About a year later they got married and announced they were having a baby.

Nothing would ever compare to the love Arizona had for her daughters, but there was something special about Joseph ‘JoJo’ Robbins. Anytime she saw the little man, she was quick to drag him away from whoever was holding him, even if it meant taking him from his very serious colonel of a grandfather.

“I don’t think we _have_ to talk to him because he left that for us. But I think maybe we should as more of a courtesy,” Arizona decided. She still told her brother almost everything, but it wasn’t the same as when they were younger. They both had families now and busy lives. Still, it would be nice to keep him informed. He helped them have their family, it was only right.

“Yeah, I think so too,” Callie agreed. “Let’s keep this quiet from everyone else for now though if that’s okay.”

“I’m totally fine with that,” Arizona told her. There was the chance they could run into problems. She didn’t want other people watching them with expectation. “When do you think we should tell the girls though? I mean this affects them too.”

This was the thing Callie had been wondering too. Amelia and Alexia were used to their family just the way it was. This would be a big change for them. “I’m not really sure. Maybe once there’s actually something to tell them, then ease them into it,” Callie suggested, leaving it open for Arizona to voice her thoughts.

“Maybe we could see about them spending more time around JoJo. They haven’t been able to spend much time around any babies. Maybe we could take a trip out to Utah? Let them spend some quality time with him.”

Callie mulled the thought around in her head. “A family vacation? We haven’t had one of those in a while. I say we do it.”

“How about right after I take my boards?” Arizona suggested.

“Even better. A celebration trip for acing them.”

“You don’t even know if I’m going to pass.”

Callie gave her a serious look. “You are going to pass with flying colors because you are Arizona Robbins.”

Arizona smiled confidently. With Callie helping her study she wasn’t worried. Her wife was a genius. Deciding that was enough serious talk, she decided to take the conversation in a new direction. “You know what the best part about having another baby is?” she whispered almost seductively. Her hands began to travel up and down Callie’s body as she leaned in to whisper in her wife’s ear. “We could make a baby right here in our bed.”

Callie’s whole body reacted to that thought. Images popped into her head of them conceiving a child while making love. “Mmm, I’m loving the sound of that.”

“Me too. How about we practice now?” Arizona mischievously grinned.

Before Callie could even say anything, Arizona was on top of her, pulling her shirt off. “Oh yeah, practice it is,” she said, licking her lips.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the last chapter I have posted at fanfic so now updates will be weekly, usually on Wednesday, but not always.

**Chapter 6**

With a huge smile on her face, Arizona slipped through the door to her patient’s room. “Good morning, Nicky,” she greeted cheerfully, wanting to keep him as upbeat as possible. She knew it was hard for anyone to have to lie in bed in virtually the same position all day. That was only worse to an active child.

“Morning, Dr. A,” Nicky responded, adopting a similar tone.

Turning to the boy’s mother, “How was last night?” Arizona asked softly.

“It wasn’t too bad. He woke up a few times in pain, but then fall back asleep as soon as the pain meds kicked in,” Aria answered.

“When can I get out of this thing?” Nicky whined as he tapped his raised leg. “I don’t like it.”

“I know, I’m sorry. We’ll get you out of there as soon as we can,” Arizona promised. “Dr. Robbins just wants to make sure your leg heals so you can run and jump like you used to. You want that too, don’t you?”

 “Uh huh,” Nicky nodded his head in agreement. “I’m super fast. No one can catch me when we play tag.”

Arizona laughed at the proud look on the little boy’s face. “We’ll get you running that fast again in no time.”

“Will, um, Dr. Robbins be stopping by?” Aria asked hesitantly. She had been up half the night thinking about the woman that looked so much like hers. She’d never really given herself time to think about what it meant that she was adopted. Now she knew she possibly had a sister and didn’t know what to do with that information.

“I’m sure she’ll be by to check up on Nicky later today,” Arizona answered. If this was any other patient Callie would have been up here looking him over as soon as she got to work. However, she knew her wife was still torn on what to do in this situation.

Aria nodded her head, trying to decide where to go from there. Looking at her little boy, she watched as his eyes closed slowly, the pain meds once again sending him off into slumber. She had so many questions, so many things she needed to know. At the same time, she wasn’t sure she was ready to know any of it.

Arizona watched the flickers of emotion flash through Aria’s eyes. Her eyes were as expressive as Callie’s. She could read each thought as it ran through Aria’s mind. “I know you have questions, and I know this is a lot for you to take in,” Arizona started gently before Aria could open her mouth to speak. “I’m not sure how much I can really tell you. It’s not really my place. I’m not sure Callie’s really ready to speak to you yet either,” Arizona told her truthfully.

Aria sighed with disappointment. She knew the other woman was right. She needed to ask Callie any questions she had, not her wife. “This is all so confusing,” Aria admitted. “A year ago I didn’t even know I was adopted and now suddenly I might have a sister. I’ve been an only child for 36 years.”

Arizona tried to hold in the laugh, but she just couldn’t, which earned her a curious glare. “There’s no maybe about it, you two are definitely sisters. She said the same thing last night about being an only child.”

“She’s an only child too?” Arizona nodded her head in response. “Wow. Guess we’re kind of in the same boat there. Can I ask a question, not about this, but about you two?”

“Sure,” Arizona responded. She felt bad about not being able to tell Aria anything. Even though they were married, it was Callie’s decision on how much she wanted to let Aria into their lives. She couldn’t force the issue, nor did she want to. Answering questions about her own life, however, was something she did with other parents if it would put them at ease.

“How long have you two been together?” Arizona might not be able to fill her in on all the things she wanted to know, like why her birth mom gave her up, or what she was like. But maybe she could find out a little something about her sister.

“Together for 13 years, married for 12.”

“Oh wow. You both are so young though,” Aria commented.

Arizona smiled, thinking back on their life together. In some ways their story was so amazing. “We met in high school. It was pretty much love at first sight for both of us. Our story is a little unique, but we married right after graduation.”

“Why unique?” Aria asked, her interest piqued.

“I’d love to tell you more, and maybe someday I will, but part of our story heads into that area of not my place to tell you.” Arizona sighed. This was so complicated. She felt stuck between what she could and couldn’t say.

Aria seemed like a nice woman, someone who Callie might enjoy having in her life. While her wife had found a brother in Tim, she knew that Callie sometimes wondered what her own life would have been like having a sibling around, someone to make the house feel a little less lonely when her parents ignored her.

“I get it. I hate it, but I get it. You are kind of the middle man. I’m sorry for that.”

“It’s not your fault. Nobody was expecting this to happen,” Arizona pointed out. “Personally I think a DNA test would be a good place to start. Not to say we’re not already sure how it’s going to turn out, but it would squelch any doubt once and for all.”

Aria ran her hands through her hair, looking around at the same four walls she’d already become fairly intimate with since her son’s admittance the day before. Then she looked at her innocent little boy in his bed, the same little boy she thought she’d never have, but was so grateful she did. He didn’t have grandparents anymore. He barely had a father these days because her ex was too busy doing other things.

“I think you’re right. A DNA test would be a good place to start,” Aria agreed.

**~CA~**

Callie wandered around the halls of Seattle Grace Mercy West hospital lost in thought. She still had a hard time with the new name. It hadn’t even been six months since the merger. She would forever be grateful she and Arizona made it through the process with their jobs intact. She didn’t know what they would have done if one of them had been let go.

Climbing the stairs slowly, she made her way to the peds ward in search of her missing wife. She had checked the OR board earlier and made sure Arizona wasn’t on it. After seeing Arizona wasn’t scheduled for surgery for another hour, she hoped they could grab some lunch, or better yet just some alone time. She was keyed up from her own surgery earlier that day and needed to expel some of that energy.

“Hey, Cindy. How’s it going?” she greeted as she stepped up to the nurses’ station.

Cindy looked up from the computer and smiled at Callie. “It’s going good, Dr. Robbins. You looking for your wife?”

“Got it in one,” Callie smiled. “She around here somewhere?”

“She’s with a patient, should be out in a few.”

Callie smiled and came around the desk, taking a seat beside Cindy. She had long ago become a fixture on this floor, not just as a surgeon but as Arizona’s wife. Cindy turned back to what she was working on, knowing Dr. Robbins could entertain herself just fine.

What Callie didn’t realize, until she sat down, was that from this position she had a perfect view into Nicky’s room. The door was closed but the blinds were open. She couldn’t help but stare at the woman who looked so much like her. Aria was sitting in the recliner in the room, but her head was cradled in her hand and she was sound asleep.

A part of her really wanted to know who that woman was. Not just if she was her sister, but what kind of person she was. Was she happy and cheerful like Arizona? Or was she more serious and thoughtful like herself? Maybe she added extra honey to her Honey Nut Cheerios like Callie did. Maybe she didn’t like cereal at all.

The other part of her didn’t want to know at all. She was the reason her mother ignored and argued with her for years. She was the reason that, to this day, Callie never knew if she could really trust her mother or not for fear that she would get hurt again.

Rationally she knew that wasn’t Aria’s fault, she didn’t ask for this any more than Callie did, but she couldn’t help how she felt.

Right now she was wishing more than anything that her mother had never told her about the baby she had given away. If she didn’t know, she would probably be sitting here pointing out all of the differences between the two of them. Instead, all she could see were the similarities.

“Why don’t you go talk to her?”

The words startled her, causing her to whip her head in her wife’s direction. “Don’t sneak up on me like that,” she growled as she tried to calm herself down.

“I’m sorry. You were the one that zoned-out, staring at your sister,” Arizona teased, trying to keep Callie in a good mood.

“We don’t know that she’s my sister.”

“Trust me. She is,” Arizona responded. “She’s willing to take a DNA test. I think it’s a good idea. Then you’d know for sure one way or another.”

Callie hated it when Arizona was right. Especially since it happened more often than not. If it came out negative she could just move on with her life. However, if it came out positive, she had some decisions to make.

“Fine.”

**~CA~**

Through the open doorway Aria watched as, once again, Callie made an appearance on the pediatric floor. The other woman had agreed to the DNA test, but that was almost three days ago. In that time, Callie had barely spoken to her, and that was only if it concerned Nicky’s care.

Still, she couldn’t help but watch the younger woman as she chatted with the nurses, laughing with them like there wasn’t a care in the world. It was so different than the woman she’d come to know over the last few days.

She couldn’t help but be mesmerized by the interaction between Callie and Arizona. And it seemed she wasn’t the only one. The two of them always drew an audience. It seemed as though their love for each other ran deeper than anything she’d ever seen before. It was in the small touches and innocent glances, the soft spoken-words, and even in their professional conversations.

She’d grown up, not enormously rich, but comfortable. Her parents were well-off enough that there wasn’t ever a concern when it came to money. She went to a fancy private school and had everything she ever wanted. She’d always assumed it was simply because she was an only child. Now she realized it was because she was the child her parents thought they would never have and wanted to give her everything.

Still, their social circle never included any gays or lesbians. She had probably gone to school with a few of them, but was too naive to realize it at the time. So the interaction between Callie and Arizona was a little weird to her at first, not having had much exposure to that lifestyle. After a while, all she could see was the love between them and it was the sweetest thing she’d ever seen.

She was really starting to hope that when the DNA results came in Callie would want to get to know her, because she really wanted to get to know her sister. She wanted to at the very least, be friends with this remarkable woman she’d only gotten a chance to get to know from a distance.

She grinned as she watched Callie pull Arizona to her and placed a quick kiss on her lips. They both looked around to see if anyone was paying attention, not realizing that Aria was in fact watching them. They shared another quick kiss before pulling apart to a respectable distance.

Arizona leaned over and whispered in Callie’s ear. The other woman grinned from ear to ear at whatever her wife told her.

The grin quickly fell away when Arizona pulled an envelope off the desk, showing it to Callie. The other woman hesitantly took the offered package from the blonde’s hand, staring down at it. Aria wished she could hear what they were saying because she had a fairly good idea what they were looking at.

When she realized they were now headed her way, she tried to make it look like she hadn’t just been watching them. She didn’t want to turn on the TV because her son was asleep, so instead she picked up her tablet and turned it on. She idly slid from screen to screen to make it look like she was playing a game.

“Hey, you have a minute?” Arizona asked, peaking her head through the door.

Hitting the power button on her tablet, she laid it on her lap and looked back up at Arizona. “Of course.”

Callie entered the room, but remained by the door, the unease she was feeling was evident on her face. Arizona had no such hesitation and moved to stand closer to Aria. “We have the DNA results. Callie and I figured you’d want to open it with us.”

“Yes, of course,” Aria responded. She wanted to know what was in the envelope more than anything, and at the same time she didn’t.

Silence decided on the room. Callie tried to look anywhere but at the paper in her hand or at Aria, while the other woman could look nowhere but at the object in Callie’s hand. That tiny little thing could change their lives.

“Callie, do you want to open it?” Arizona prodded when Callie made no moves to do so.

“No, uh, how about you do it,” Callie said, stepping further into the room so she could hand it to Aria.

“No, I don’t want to open it either,” Aria told them, holding her hands in the air in surrender.

“Both of you two are such babies,” Arizona muttered, taking the envelope from Callie’s hand and ripping it open. Both Latinas watched in fascination as Arizona read the words on the paper, waiting with baited breath for her to speak.

“It’s official, you’re sisters,” Arizona announced without much fanfare.

No one was really surprised, but it held a punch. It wasn’t just something they’d made up in their heads. This was reality. After all these years, Callie had accidentally found her mother’s other daughter.

“I’m sorry. I just uh,” Callie started, but before she finished her thought she was running out the door and as far away as she could possibly get.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

In stunned silence, Arizona and Aria watched Callie walk out of Nicky’s room and disappear down the hallway. Arizona stood there, unsure of what to do or what to say. She had her suspicions about the cause of Callie’s reaction, but couldn’t now for sure since her wife wasn’t really sharing with her.

It was clear Callie’s reaction had to do with more than just the results of the DNA test, since they had all pretty much been expecting the results they revieced.

“She um, she just needs some time,” Arizona tried to reassure not only Aria but herself as well. “Things between Callie and her mother, your mother, haven’t exactly been easy, which makes everything more complicated.”

Aria nodded her head in understanding. “I’m sorry,” she apologized.

“It’s not your fault,” Arizona dismissed. With a promise to come check on them again later, Arizona left the room and headed towards the attending lounge in hopes of finding her wife. She was disappointed to find it empty. Callie wasn’t scheduled for any surgeries so she wasn’t sure where else to look.

With a new direction in mind, Arizona found an empty on-call room and locked the door behind her. Plopping down on the bed, she reclined back and pulled her phone out of her labcoat pocket. Scrolling through her contacts, she found the one she was looking for.

“Hey, Mom,” she greeted when Barbara answered on the other end. “Could you do me a favor?”

“Anything, sweetheart,” Barbara easily agreed.

“I know it’s a school night, but do you think you and dad could keep the girls at your house tonight?” Maybe giving Callie a quiet night would help the other woman work through her thoughts.  She wasn’t sure it was something Callie wanted, but maybe it was something she needed. Arizona considered for a moment staying at her parents too, but didn’t want to be far from Callie if she needed her.

“Of course we can,” Barbara smiled at the thought. She’d never deny extra time with her granddaughters. “Is everything alright?” she asked concerned.

“Yeah, at least I think it is,” Arizona started, not sure how to explain without saying too much, at least for the time being. “Callie’s just dealing with something and I was thinking maybe a quiet night would help her. I’ll fill you in more later,” she promised. The elder Robbins had long ago been told about Callie’s sister, but now wasn’t the time to let them know they’d found her.

“Alright, well I’ll have the girls grab their things when they get home from school and then get them back there tomorrow morning. Give Callie my love,” Barbara ordered her daughter. She’d felt like something was off with her daughter-in-law the last few times she’d spoken with her, but she didn’t want to push. She knew the other woman would come to her when she was ready.

“I will,” Arizona told her. After a quick goodbye, she ended the call and threw the phone on the bed next to her. Lying back, she closed her eyes and tried to think. Clearly more than just Aria showing up in their lives was bugging her wife. She had a feeling she knew what was going on.

When Callie and Lucia were fighting, Callie had always been so nonchalant about the whole thing. Arizona always worried that Callie pushing down her emotions would come back to haunt her. It looked like she was correct. Her wife was now feeling all of the emotions she should have felt back in high school. Now Arizona just needed to find a way to help her deal with them.

**~CA~**

Callie climbed her way up the stairs and opened the doors that led out onto the helicopter pad. Wandering around to the side of the roof, she found a good hiding place and sat down.

Staring down at the phone in her hand, she was torn. A part of her felt like she should tell her mother that she’d found Aria. Another part of her worried what the news would do to their relationship. Would Callie be pushed to the side again if Lucia and Aria developed a relationship?

Maybe Aria didn’t even want to meet their mother. Was she supposed to honor that wish if it’s what the other woman wanted? She didn’t think it would be possible to keep such a secret from her mother indefinitely, no matter if it was what Aria wanted or not.

A lone tear slid down her cheek as she thought about every single time her mother had neglected. She thought about every argument, every heated word. She tried to remember any moment where she’d felt truly loved and wanted, but none came to mind.

She didn’t know how long she was on that rooftop, but only the sound of her pager finally pulled her from her thoughts. She wiped a hand across her eyes, removing any remnants of tears. Hands smoothed her clothes as she headed back inside and down to the ER to see who had paged her.

The rest of the day went by in a blur. She blocked out all of her personal feelings and concentrated fully on her patients. Throwing herself into her work was always a good way to forget everything that was going on.

“Arizona, Amelia, Alexia?” Callie called through the darkened house later that night. It was too early for the girls to be in bed so she wasn’t sure why the house was so quiet. She knew Arizona had beaten her home though because her car was in the garage. “Where is everybody?” she mumbled to herself.

Dropping her purse on the couch, she made her way through the house towards the kitchen and the stairs that led to the basement. Often times she’d find the girls down there playing video games, but everything was quiet at the bottom.

She headed back upstairs only to find both of her daughters’ rooms empty, but a few muffled sounds from the direction of her bedroom alerted her to someone’s presence in the house. Her bedroom was empty, but there was a glow coming from the connecting bathroom.

What she didn’t expect to find was Arizona on the lip of the tub, wearing only a robe, and lit candles all around her. “What’s going on?” she asked quietly.

“I thought after the day you had, you could use a little relaxation,” Arizona smiled. Standing up, she moved to her wife, intent on helping her out of her clothes.

“Where are the girls?”

“They are spending the night with their grandparents,” the blonde whispered, placing a kiss on Callie’s lips as soon as she’d freed her from her shirt.

“But it’s a school night,” Callie protested weakly, already enjoying what Arizona was doing to her.

“And mom is fully capable of getting them to school in the morning. Now just enjoy,” Arizona instructed as she finished undressing her wife. Slipping her robe off, she slid into the tub and then held out her hand for Callie to join her.

Typically when they shared a bath, Callie was always the one holding Arizona to her, but tonight was all about Arizona taking care of her wife. Once Callie was in the water, Arizona pulled her back so she was lying against the smaller girl’s chest. Putting her arms around Callie’s waist, she placed a kiss on her shoulder, holding her close.

“This is definitely what I needed,” Callie whispered, closing her eyes and giving all her trust to Arizona. Soft hands made their way around her body, caressing her in a way that only they knew how.

“I love you so much, sweetheart. I hope you never forget that,” Arizona whispered in Callie’s ear as her right hand hit the spot Callie desperately need. “I love how you trust me to touch you like this, to know I am the one that is making you come.” It wasn’t much longer before Callie was doing exactly that.

The two women gently washed each other’s body before climbing out of the tub. Taking their time drying each other off, they headed back into their room and slid beneath the covers naked.

With Callie’s head on her shoulders, Arizona nuzzled her face into dark hair. “Tim called me today,” she said softly, not wanting to break the moment, but wanting to talk.

“Oh yeah? How’s he doing? How’s JoJo?” Callie asked. Their nephew was the cutest little boy either girl had ever seen. He had his mother’s red hair and Tim’s dimpled smile. Callie was really hoping their next baby would be a boy.

“They are all doing really well. JoJo is walking now. Tim said he keeps Megan on her feet all day. He’s a little stinker too, always into everything,” Arizona grinned at the thought.

“Just like Alexia was at that age. Must be a Robbins thing,” Callie teased. Although Amelia had been fairly active around that time, because of her prematurity it had taken her much longer to get into the mischief her sister and baby cousin found so easily.

“Oh hush you,” Arizona said, lightly pinching Callie in the side. Turning more serious, “I told him about us wanting another baby. I hope that’s okay. We never really discussed when we were going to tell me.”

Callie looked up at Arizona and reached a hand up to cup her cheek. “No, it’s fine. We didn’t talk about it,” she agreed. “What did he say?”

“Not much, just that he was happy for us. He’s going to tell Megan, but promised to keep it a secret from anyone else.”

Callie smiled, glad to have someone like Tim in her life. Honestly she was grateful to the entire Robbins family for taking her in when she never really felt like she had a family of her own. She’d carried the name for over 12 years now and still some days it seemed surreal. “I love you so much,” she whispered just before she placed a deep kiss on her wife’s lips.

Arizona smiled, unsure of where that came from, but loving the sentiment all the same. “I love you too. But if you’re trying to start something, we probably need to eat dinner first,” she teased.

After giving it some thought, Callie realized Arizona was right. She couldn’t remember the last time she ate. She hadn’t had time to eat between her surgeries. As soon as she realized this her stomach let out a loud growl. “Maybe you’re right about that.”

“Come on goof, let’s get some grub.” Pushing Callie off her body, Arizona climbed out of bed in search of some comfortable clothes to spend the rest of the night in.”

“Grub? And who’s the goof?” Callie smiled. She loved the times when Arizona reminder of the young girl she’d fallen in love with. She fell more in love with the blonde every day, but sometimes it was nice to be reminded where they started.

“So how are you really doing with this whole sister thing?” Arizona asked once they were seated at the table with some leftover chicken lasagna on their plates. She was hoping now that Callie was more relaxed, she’d be more willing to open up.

“I don’t know. It’s confusing,” Callie started. She realized she’d been keeping herself closed off from Arizona and that was the last thing she wanted to do. They’d always been able to communicate with each other. It was what made their bond so strong.

“Go on,” Arizona encouraged when Callie sat there in silence.

“I don’t know if I’m supposed to tell Mom or not. Am I supposed to just make nice and start inviting her to family events now?” She had so many questions and so few answers.

“I think you just have to play it by ear. See what both of you want out of this. As for telling your mom, well I think that’s something you need to discuss with Aria first. I know that may feel like you’re being disloyal to your mother, but all of us were thrown into this situation. Aria didn’t go looking for you, she may not be ready to meet Lucia,” Arizona pointed out.

Callie pondered Arizona’s words. She was right. It would be different if one of the parties involved had gone looking for the other, but in this case it was simply a coincidence that they’d all met.

“But what if mom someday goes looking for her and finds out I’ve known all along?” Callie asked, knowing Arizona didn’t have the answer. As far as she knew Lucia had no intention to find her other child, but she couldn’t sure it wouldn’t happen one day.

“I don’t know sweetie,” Arizona told her, knowing Callie wasn’t really expecting an answer. “That’s one bridge you’d have to cross if you come to it.

“What if Aria does want to meet her and then Mom pushes me away again?” Callie asked with fear in her voice. Now they were getting to the root of what Callie was feeling. “She couldn’t even look at me before because I made her miss her precious oldest child. What if they meet and I become invisible again?”

Arizona didn’t miss the glossy look in Callie’s eyes. Her wife was on the verge of tears. Now she was happy she’d sent the girls to their grandparents’ for the night. It looked like maybe Callie was finally going to be able to deal with everything she’d bottled up for the last 14 years- well, her entire life really.

 “She’s not going to do that,” Arizona tried to reassure.

“You don’t know that,” Callie quickly replied. “She did it before. Surely it wouldn’t be hard for her to do it again.”

“Things are different now,” Arizona told her. While they still weren’t as close as some parent-child duos, Callie and Lucia had made great strides trying to fill the gap in their relationship. “Maybe this will bring you two closer,” she pointed out.

“I won’t hold my breath on that one, but it’s possible I guess.”

As they slowly ate their dinner, Callie talked more openly about her fears. Arizona held her hand across the table, sending every ounce of love she possibly could through that simple touch.

“I really think you need to talk to Aria. She has so many questions and it’s not my place to answer them,” Arizona suggested as they both took their dishes to the sink. Callie rinsed them off while Arizona loaded them into the dishwasher.

“I know. I didn’t mean to take off like that. I just needed some time to think,” Callie explained.

“I know you did, and I told her that too. I’d answer her questions if you were okay with that, but I think its better coming from you.”

“No you’re right. I’ll talk to her, I promise. Maybe I’ll stop in on her tomorrow,” Callie thought aloud as she ran through her schedule in her head.

“Alright, well if you want me there with you just page me, even if it’s just to entertain Nicky while you two talk.”

“I will. I promise,” Callie told her, pulling Arizona into her arms and place a kiss on her forehead. “Thank you, for be here with me through this.”

“Mmm, anytime. It’s what I’m here for.”

Callie smiled, pulling Arizona even closer to her, silently hoping tomorrow would take awhile to get here.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just a heads up, there may or may not be a chapter next week. With the holiday and my sister being in town (haven't seen her and the kids in over a year) I might not have time.
> 
> Now some Callie/Aria time finally.

**Chapter 8**

Hesitating outside the door to Nicky’s room, Callie tried to prepare herself for her talk with Aria. She spent the night before tossing and turning, trying to figure out what she wanted to say to the other woman. Hours later she finally decided how to go about it.

With a deep breath and a small knock, she pushed herself to enter the room. “Good morning you two,” she greeted with a smile. She could see the surprise on Aria’s face but didn’t comment.

“Morning, Dr. Robbins,” Nicky greeted back. “When can I get out of this thing?” He was determined to get out of this bed as soon as possible and thought maybe if he kept bugging the doctors, they would let him.

Callie’s smile fell slightly at his question. Knowing this boy was technically her nephew made this more personal for her now. She knew she should probably take herself off his case, but didn’t trust anyone else in her department to treat him.

She moved toward his bed and squatted beside him so that they were eye-level. “We’ll get you out of here and back home very soon, I promise,” she told him, giving his hair a tussle. “But guess what?” she asked, trying to get him a little more upbeat.

“What?”

“Since you’re such a super awesome patient, I’m going to let you call me Dr. Callie,” she told him, earning a smile in return. Maybe one day he’d call her Aunt Callie, but they hadn’t told him yet. “Now that we’re such good friends, can I borrow your mom for a minute?” Nicky shrugged his shoulders, not caring one way or another.

Callie silently nodded her head towards the hallway, prompting Aria to stand and follow her. Once they were out of the room, she pulled the door nearly shut but left a small crack in case her son needed her.

“I’m sorry for how I’ve been acting. It’s not like me at all,” Callie started.

Aria waved her off. “Don’t worry about it,” she dismissed. “This was a shock to both of us.”

“That it was,” Callie agreed. “I know we need to talk, but I really don’t want to do it here. This place is like gossip central and there are ears everywhere,” she explained, not ready for her personal life to be the topic of conversation. “I was wonder if maybe you’d be willing to come to dinner at our house tonight. Or any other night if tonight’s no good,” she quickly added. “I could even have Arizona get someone to sit with Nicky.”

Aria gave it some serious thought. She really wanted to have her questions answered, but the thought of leaving her son alone in here even for a few hours gave her pause. She hadn’t left the building since he’d been admitted. Holly had been bugging Aria to let her come sit with him to give her a break for a few hours, especially since she had insisted on paying her this whole time. It wasn’t the young girl’s fault that her son was in the hospital, it was an accident.

“No, tonight will probably be fine. I’ll call Holly and see if she can come sit with him for a little bit. She’s been bugging me to let her do it anyway. Feels like she’s not earning her paycheck. I’m still paying her,” Aria smiled. “I didn’t see any reason for her to lose her only source of income over a playground accident. Told her to consider it a paid vacation. She’s more than earned it.”

Callie nodded her head in agreement, knowing she’d do the same thing in Aria’s position. “Is 6:30 okay?” Callie asked. If she actually managed to make it out of the hospital at five, it would give her plenty of time to make something presentable.

“That should be fine,” Aria answered. “Let me call Holly and make sure, but I don’t see it being a problem.”

“Alright,” Callie said, about to take her leave when Aria reminded her she needed their address. “Oh yeah, that might be a good idea,” she grinned. She took the cell phone Aria was offering and typed in her address, adding her own number for good measure. “Just text me when you know for sure, or let Arizona know.”

“Sounds good,” Aria agreed, before heading back into her son’s room as Callie took off down the hall.

**~CA~**

Running her hands over her body nervously, Aria made sure all of the wrinkles were out. She was more nervous than she was willing to admit. She was about to enter her sister’s home. The same sister she didn’t even know she had just a week ago. Preparing herself as best she could, she forced herself to ring the doorbell.

She was prepared for Callie or maybe even Arizona to open the door. What she wasn’t expecting was for a teenager that looked a lot like Callie and herself to open the door. She briefly wondered if she had the wrong house, again. “Um, I’m looking for Callie,” she told the teen slowly.

“Who are you?” Amelia asked, having never seen this woman before.

“My name’s Aria,” she answered. She wondered for a moment if there was another sister, before remembering that Arizona had told her Callie was an only child. She wasn’t sure how old Callie was, but couldn’t imagine she had a child as old as the one before her.

“Mom!” Amelia yelled through the house, answering Aria’s unspoken question. “There’s a woman named Aria here looking for you.”

“Well let her in,” Callie yelled back from somewhere in the house. “She’s going to join us for dinner. I’ll be out in a minute.”

Amelia turned back to the woman, opening the door wider. “Come in. I’m Amelia,” she introduced herself. “You know, you look a lot like my mom.”

Apparently Callie hadn’t yet told her daughter about Aria, so she wasn’t sure how to respond to that. “Yeah, I know,” she offered.

“Well uh, make yourself at home,” Amelia told Aria. “Mom should be down in a minute. I need to go finish setting the table. Would have been nice if my mom would have told me I was setting an extra place,” she yelled up the stairs in a teasing manner.

“Sorry,” was all they got from the woman upstairs.

Amelia left the room, leaving Aria alone to entertain herself. Wandering around the living room, she looked at each of the family photos. Apparently Callie and Arizona had two daughters. Most of the pictures looked fairly recent, but there was one that caught her attention. Callie and Arizona were dressed in caps and gowns with a baby that couldn’t be much more than a year old between them. They both looked so young in that picture.

“Sorry about that. I got home a little later than planned so I still needed to get the hospital smell off me,” Callie said behind her, startling her.

“Is this your high school graduation?” Aria asked, pointing at the picture.

“Yeah it was,” Callie smiled at the memory. That was a good day for all of them.

“You were a teen mom.” It wasn’t a question, the evidence was there in front of her. She was now even more impressed with the woman her sister was. She was a successful surgeon that didn’t let her situation stop her from achieving her dreams.

“Yep, I had Amelia when I was 17. But that’s all part of the story I’ll tell you later,” Callie told her. “Dinner is all ready. We’re just waiting on Arizona. She should be home any minute.” She moved over to the staircase. “Lex, get washed up for dinner, Mama is going to be home in like five minutes.”

“Fine,” Alexia grumbled back loud enough for her mom to hear her.

“She’s reading,” Callie explained. “She hates it when we make her put the book down.” There was a proud smile on Callie’s face that Aria would recognize anyone. Callie loved her kids more than anything. “Did you find the place alright?” Callie asked, trying to make conversation.

“Actually, I went to the house next door first,” Aria answered. “I wasn’t looking at the house number. I just saw the name Robbins on the mailbox. I guess there’s more than one of you on this street. The lady who answered the door, pointed me over here.”

Callie laughed loudly. “I didn’t even think of that, I’m sorry. Arizona’s parent’s live next door. We lived with them on and off through school and our early residency days before this house went up for sale.”

“Oh, well that’s nice,” Aria responded, not really sure if she needed to or not.

“Guess I’ll be explaining to her sooner rather than later who you are now,” the younger woman thought out loud. “Barbara’s known almost as long as we have that I had a sister out there somewhere. She’s probably put the pieces together by now though.”

Aria felt a bit weird knowing so many people knew of her existence but she didn’t know of any of theirs. There wasn’t much she could do about it though so she tried to push it all to the back of her mind. A door opening and closing somewhere in the house made that easier.

“Sounds like Arizona’s home,” Callie said just before the blonde in question appeared in the room.

“Hey, baby,” Arizona greeted Callie first, giving her a quick kiss on the lips. “Good to see you Aria,” she greeted. “I’m going to go wash up, I’ll be right down,” she promised before taking the stairs two at a time.”

“She’s energetic,” Aria commented.

Callie turned back to Aria after her wife was out of sight. “She’s always been that way. Ever since I’ve known her,” she told her, a bit of nostalgia in her voice. Callie motioned for Aria to follow her, leading the way into the dining room. “I hope you don’t mind if we eat first and then talk. There are some things my daughters don’t need to know yet.”

“No, that’s fine. Holly told me I better not be back any early than eight. She’s kind of a pushy one,” Aria joked. It was clear to Callie that the two women were more than just employer and employee. They also seemed like good friends.

Shortly after Callie and Aria were seated, the rest of the family filed in taking their normal seats around the table. Arizona introduced Alexia to their guest and Aria quickly realized she was the quieter of the two girls. She could see traces of Arizona in the girl, but she could see Callie as well. She briefly wondered how that was possible but wasn’t sure it was polite to ask.

“So how come you two look so much alike?” Amelia asked, looking at Callie and then Aria.

Callie choked on her noodles, even though she shouldn’t have been surprised by the question. She wasn’t sure she was ready to answer it. She wasn’t in the habit of lying to her daughters though and she wasn’t about to start now. “Because we’re sisters,” she explained.

“How come we’ve never met her before then?” It was too much to hope that Amelia would leave it at such a simple explanation. The girl had a natural curiosity for just about everything.

“Because,” Callie started slowly, trying to figure out what she did and didn’t want to say. Although the girls didn’t talk to their grandmother much, she didn’t want them saying something to Lucia before Callie and Aria had decided what they wanted to do about this situation. “She grew up in a different family and we only just met each other this week.”

“She was adopted?” Amelia kept going. She had a few kids in her school that were adopted so she kind of understood how it worked.

“Yes, she was. Now eat your dinner,” Callie told her, leaving no room for any more questions.

The rest of the meal went by mostly in silence. The two mothers left their daughters with the chore of cleaning up the table with orders to head upstairs and finish their homework once they were done. Knowing the girls would do as they were told, the three women made their way through the house and into the family room.

Callie sat back into a corner of the love seat, pulling Arizona into her side in a familiar position, while Aria took a seat across from them. “So, um, where to begin,” Callie wondered aloud.

“Anywhere is fine,” Aria told her. She had so many questions, she figured it best to let Callie tell her what she wanted and if possible, she’d ask anything she wanted to know later if it wasn’t answered.

Deciding the beginning was best, Callie started talking. “Mom was 15 years old when she fell in love for the first time. It’s probably like most stories you hear about teenagers in love, thinking they’ll be together forever.”

“Sometimes that happens,” Aria smiled, looking at the two women who were the very proof of that.

Callie looked down at Arizona then and placed a kiss on her forehead. “Yeah, we were really lucky like that,” Callie agreed. “For mom, though, that wasn’t the case. Her boyfriend left her when she told him she was pregnant and her parents sent her away. She didn’t want to give you up, but she was so young. When her parents handed her the relinquishment papers she didn’t feel she had much of a choice.”

“Well I guess it’s nice to know I was wanted by one of my parents at least,” Aria sighed, stuck on the part about her biological father dumping her mother at the news she was pregnant. She’d had a good life though so she couldn’t really complain about being given up.

“I think mom always resented her parents for that, she met and married my dad right out of high school. I’m not saying they don’t love each other, because I think they do. But I think they rushed everything because she wanted away from her parents. They had me not much later.” Callie stopped then thinking how much else she wanted to tell this woman. She deserved an explanation for why Callie had closed off so much.

“My parents never really had time for me,” she started slowly. “My dad was focused on building his family’s empire. I don’t know if you’ve ever heard of the Torres family?”

Aria nodded her head that she had. There weren’t very many people this far west that hadn’t heard of the Torres family. They had dealings in just about everything from hotels, to factories, casinos, restaurants, and even a few car dealerships.

“Well my father is Carlos Torres, currently the CEO of Torres, Inc.,” Callie explained. “Needless to say he wasn’t around much. My mother was gone much of the time too, but when I was really little she at least tried to make time for me. After awhile I was pretty much left with nannies and other household employees.”

Callie felt Arizona press closer to her in a show of support. One of the good things about growing up how she did was that it lead her to Arizona. She couldn’t imagine her life without the blonde in it. The other thing, of course, was Amelia and later Alexia.

“To say that my parents were disappointed when I announced I was pregnant at 17 would be an understatement. My dad eventually came around and our relationship actually improved greatly. But Mom, well she and I butted heads a lot after that. We couldn’t even be in the same room without fighting.”

“Oh yeah, the flares between them were more intense than fireworks on the 4th of July,” Arizona threw in with a smile.

“Anyway,” Callie drawled, returning to the story at hand. She took Aria through her meeting of Arizona and how they’d eventually fallen in love. How the blonde had easily slipped into the role of mother to Amelia when they started dating. Both women expressed how very right it felt to be a family like it was fate.

“It wasn’t until Alexia was born that I finally found out why my mother acted the way she did. When I got pregnant, it brought up all those memories of you. She started therapy after that and it went a long way towards her finally releasing all of those emotions she’d bottled up.”

Callie stopped there, giving Aria a minute to digest everything. She didn’t want to throw too much at the other woman all at once. “It seems I am not unlike my mother. When you showed up at the hospital, all the anger and resentment I’d felt towards my parents for my childhood came bubbling up. And possibly a little worry that I’d be pushed to the background again if mom found you,” she admitted.

Aria sat there in silence, unsure of how to respond. It was a lot to take in. She couldn’t imagine growing up the way the younger girl did. At least her parents had been there for her. They’d attended school functions and helped her with her homework. All those little things parents do for their children, things Callie never had.

On top of that, she’d just learned that she was related to some of the wealthiest people on the west coast. She wasn’t a stranger to money, but from what she knew, the Torres family was in a whole other ballpark. Although she had to admit her sister didn’t act like some rich socialite. She seemed perfectly content in this modest home she shared with her wife.

“I’m sorry,” Aria stuttered out, not sure what she was apologizing for.

“It’s not your fault,” Callie dismissed. “It’s just my stupid insecurities. But there is one thing we do need to talk about.”

“What’s that?”

“I haven’t said anything to Mom yet, but I’m not sure I could keep it from her indefinitely. So I gotta ask if meeting her is something you want.”

Aria sat back in her chair and gave it some thought. In all honesty, she hadn’t even thought about meeting her birth mother. She had been too focused on the idea of having a sister to give anything else about the situation any thought. “I don’t know. It’s something I’ll have to think about,” she admitted. “Can you give me some time on that one?”

Callie nodded her head. “Sure. Just let me know.”

The rest of the night passed quickly as the three women chatted and got to know each other better. Aria took her leave when the two Robbins women admitted it was time for the girls to go to bed. Although their girls were old enough to get themselves ready for bed, the two mothers liked to spend one-on-one time with them before they went to sleep, knowing it wasn’t always possible because their jobs.

As the two women snuggled close together on their own bed a while later, Callie smiled a genuine smile as she remembered the night. “I have a sister,” Callie said, and for the first time she was excited at the prospect.


	9. Chapter 9

**Chapter 9**

The spring was back in Callie’s step as she made her way through the halls of the hospital. Her talk with Aria the night before released a lot of pent-up emotions. A part of her still felt bad about keeping this from her mother, but she knew she needed to give Aria time decide what she wanted to do.

Remembering that her phone rang during surgery, she pulled it out of her lab coat pocket and smiled down at the wallpaper. A few weekends ago, Callie had been stuck at the hospital, so Arizona had decided to have a movie marathon with their girls to keep them occupied. By the time Callie made it home, all three were passed out on the couch, with Amelia tucked into her Mama’s shoulder and Alexia’s head in her lap. Callie couldn’t pass up to chance to capture the moment.

She opened her messages and went straight to Arizona’s name, wanting to make sure her wife wasn’t cancelling on her. They were supposed to meet up for lunch, since neither of them had any surgeries that afternoon.

“I’m in our on-call room,” was all the message said.

Callie turned around and headed for the stairs, taking them two at a time towards the peds floor. “Their” on-call room, as they liked to call it, was on her wife’s floor. It was the first room they’d broke their ‘no sex in the hospital’ rule in.

Inside the room Arizona was sitting in the middle of the twin bed with note cards and papers all around her. The blonde had a note card in her hand, her lips moving as she read the words on it. She was so engrossed in what she was doing that she hadn’t even realized she was no longer alone.

With a grin, Callie opened and closed the door, louder this time, but there was still no reaction from her wife. Walking further into the room, she called out a gentle “Arizona,” not wanting to scare the other woman.

Arizona’s head shot up and immediately locked eyes with her wife. “Oh, hey.”

“Hey,” Callie said back as she moved some things on the bed to sit down. “What are you doing in here? I thought we were meeting downstairs for lunch.”

“I know, I’m sorry. I need to study. I’ve only got two weeks left until I take my boards,” Arizona explained.

“You also need food,” Callie pointed out. Her wife was more than ready for the test, a fact Arizona refused to believe. But Callie knew she’d be fine, she’d helped her study on several occasions and knew she was well prepared. “You can’t think straight on an empty stomach.”

Arizona sighed, put the note card down in her lap, and laid her head on her wife’s shoulder. “I know. I’m just freaking out. This test is huge and if I don’t pass it, then what?”

“Then you can flip burgers at McDonald’s,” Callie joked, earning her a light slap to the arm. “Seriously though, you’re going to do just fine. After all, the Robbins study method never fails.”

“Well, how about we use that method right now,” Arizona whispered, already getting aroused at the thought. Callie’s study method, that she dubbed ‘The Robbins Method’, had brought them both a lot of pleasure in the past. It always started out with the testee losing an article of clothing if they got an answer wrong, or the tester losing an article if the testee got it right. Once the clothes were gone, they moved into sexual favors with each question.

Callie smiled and turned her head just enough to place a kiss on Arizona’s forehead before pulling away. “How about I go grab some lunch first and then I’ll help you study,” she offered. Even if Arizona wasn’t hungry, she was starving.

“Alright, fine, you win. Go get us some food,” Arizona agreed. But before Callie could stand back up, she grabbed the sides of her lab coat and placed a deep kiss on her wife’s lips. “Hurry back,” she whispered as they pulled apart.

All Callie could do was nod her head as she headed out the door, intending to do just that.

A little while later the two women lay cuddled together as they tried to catch their breaths. Arizona’s note cards and papers long forgotten, the ones that crinkled underneath them no longer usable.

“You know, I’ve heard positive reinforcement is an effective tool, but damn,” Arizona smiled, reliving the pleasure Callie had just given her with her tongue alone. Apparently even after all these years of marriage, her wife still had some tricks up her sleeve.

Callie nuzzled her face into Arizona’s neck and kissed the bare skin. With an arm around Arizona’s waist, she pulled them so they were chest-to-chest. “See, no way you can fail that test,” she whispered before kissing Arizona slowly. “I just want to stay in this bed with you all day.”

“Mmm. Me too. But we probably ought to go back to work soon. I’m surprised no one has missed us yet.” If Arizona had estimated right, it had been more than two and half hours since Callie had come back with their lunches.

“You’re right. At least we should actually get to go home at the same time tonight,” Callie smiled. As a resident, Arizona was often stuck at the hospital much later than Callie. They were both hoping that once she became an attending that would change.

“Good point,” Arizona said softly as she tried to stay awake. Callie had exhausted her and now all she wanted to do was sleep.

“Don’t fall asleep,” Callie warned. They really did need to get dressed and back to work. She wanted to visit Nicky and Aria before she went home as well.

“But I’m so comfy,” Arizona whined as she cuddled even closer to her wife.

Callie let out a full belly laugh at her wife’s whine. Sometimes she could forget that her wife was now a 30 year old surgeon and not the 18 year old girl she’d married. Sure Arizona had matured over the years, but in a lot of ways she was still that same girl Callie met all those years ago. And she couldn’t be happier about that.

“Well you won’t be comfy for long,” Callie told her. Callie untangled herself from her wife and began looking for her clothes, tossing Arizona’s at her as she found them. Though Arizona didn’t even attempt to put them on.

Once Callie was dressed, she walked back over to Arizona, who was now pouting, and kissed her forehead, nose and finally her lips. “I’m going to stop in Nicky’s room while I’m up here. I’ll see you later. I love you.”

“I love you, too,” Arizona huffed, upset about not getting her way, even though she knew Callie was right.

**~CA~**

Down the hall, Aria was busy on her laptop trying not to get too far behind at work. She knew Nicky would be just fine on his own for a few hours, and that Holly would even come sit with him if she asked, but she couldn’t bring herself to leave him. Her son was always at the very top of her priority list.

Movement out of the corner of eye caused her to look up. She was only vaguely surprised to see Callie. Taking in Callie’s appearance, particularly her hair, Aria smirked. She wasn’t sure if they were at a place where they could tease each other, but she couldn’t let the opportunity pass. “Interesting hairdo you’ve got going on there,” she quipped. “Either you’ve been working hard, or hardly working.”

“Dammit, knew I forgot something,” Callie muttered, heading quickly to the adjoined bathroom to fix her hair. “Good thing I stopped in here first and not a patients room,” she told Aria as she came back into the room.

“Ah, so you were hardly working,” Aria smirked.

“Shut up,” Callie told her in a voice that let Aria know she wasn’t mad. “If you must know, I was helping Arizona study for her boards.”

“I’ll bet you were.”

Callie groaned. Apparently Aria was going to be as bad as Tim. How was it that both her and Arizona had older siblings that never let up once they got going. “I was!” And apparently she couldn’t let it go either.

“Uh huh, sure. If that’s your story,” Aria said, shaking her head like she didn’t believe her.

“What you fighting about?” Nicky broke in. He’d been trying to watch his cartoons, but he’d never seen his mom act like that with his doctors.

“Nothing you need to worry about sweetie,” Aria assured, ashamed she’d forgotten for a few moments that her son could hear them. At least neither woman had said anything too graphic.

Nicky shrugged, not really interested anyway. “Do I get out of here yet, Dr. Callie?” he changed topics. He figured if he kept asking, eventually someone would say yes.

“Actually Dr. Callie is um,” Aria started, looking to Callie to make sure it was okay. Callie just nodded, it wasn’t her choice anyway it was Aria’s. Plus her girls already knew. “Dr. Callie isn’t just your doctor.”

“She’s not?”

“No, she’s also your aunt,” Aria told him.

Nicky’s eyes opened wide. “Like Aunt Beth?”

Aria smiled, knowing he understood. “Yes, like Aunt Beth, only Callie is my sister and Beth is your dad’s sister.”

“Oh,” Nicky replied. Turning to Callie, “Am I supposed to call you Aunt Callie now?”

Callie smiled and sat down in the chair by his bed. “If you want to. I’m more than happy to be Aunt Callie. And guess what?”

“What?” Nicky asked excitedly. Already, Callie was nicer to him then Aunt Beth, so he couldn’t imagine it would get any better.

“Dr. Arizona is my wife, so she’s your aunt too. And you have two cousins. We told them all about you last night and they are excited to meet you.”

“Really?” He’d never had cousins before, wasn’t really even sure what that meant, but it sounded like fun.

“Really,” Callie told him. “Maybe tomorrow they can stop by after school. If that’s okay with you and your mom.”

Nicky turned to his mother. “Can they?”

Aria smiled at the look on her son’s face. “Of course they can.” Maybe she should take a page from her son’s book. This whole situation was so confusing to her, but to him it was nothing but exciting.

“Yay!” he yelled.

Nicky turned back to his cartoons, done with the conversation for now, so Callie got up and went around the bed closer to Aria so they could talk quietly. There was something in that conversation that had her wondering.

“Can I ask you a question? And you totally don’t have to answer it if you don’t want too,” she quickly added. She didn’t want Aria to feel put on the spot. “Where is his dad? You’ve been doing this alone so I was just curious.”

“I’m not sure. Last I heard he was in New York, I think.”

“You don’t know?” Callie asked without accusation. She’d already told Aria how she got pregnant with Amelia so she hoped the other woman would know she wasn’t judging her.

“He’s a musician, he travels a lot,” Aria explained.

“Ah.” Callie understood now. And it made her even more curious than before. She knew Aria was a lawyer, so that seemed like an odd combination. Although Aria seemed like a fun girl, she also had that tough as steel thing going on, proving she was probably a powerful opponent in the court room.

“Yeah, he wasn’t exactly my type,” Aria started, already knowing what Callie was thinking. “I think that’s what I liked most about him. It wasn’t really meant to be serious between us, but when I got pregnant we decided to live together and get married. It only took two weeks of us living together to realize it would never work in the long run. We were just too different. He visits Nicky when he can, but it’s not very often.”

“That sucks,” Callie told her. “But it makes you one of us. Seems like it’s a requirement in this family for the women to get pregnant out of wedlock,” she joked. “Although, at least you were an adult with a stable career,” she said more seriously.

“I can’t even imagine what it was like for you,” Aria sympathized. “Doing that all on your own and still going to school. Honestly, I’m more than a little impressed with all you’ve accomplished.”

“Thanks. It wasn’t easy, but I wasn’t entirely alone. Sitting by Amelia’s incubator when she was born sucked because I was alone for that. But for the rest, I had the Robbins family. They were there for me and Amelia the first day we stepped into their home. I’ll forever be grateful they moved here.”

“And that one of them happened to be the love of your life.” Aria knew it didn’t need to be said, but she said it anyway.

“There is that,” Callie agreed. “Honestly I don’t think I would have made it though med school without Arizona by my side. And I wouldn’t have Lex either.” Her life without her wife and daughter, that was a thought she just didn’t want to even consider.

“I understand that. Even knowing how it ended, I wouldn’t change my relationship with Oscar for the world because it gave me Nicky. He’s the best thing in my life,” Aria said, her eyes moving to smile at her boy.

“I know what you mean. My girls, on occasion, drive me to the brink of insanity, but I wouldn’t trade them for anything in the world. They are good kids really, but even they can’t escape all the drama that seems to find pre-teen and teen girls.” She knew she had it lucky. Although they still had three years before Lex hit the teen years. Then it was anyone’s guess.

“Whatever made you decide to have two kids in college?” Aria asked. Although she was asking more because she was impressed, it did seem like it was probably a lot of work. And it wasn’t like Alexia was an accident.

“That was all my wife’s idea,” Callie answered quickly. “She thought Amelia needed a playmate while we were studying and stuff. I kind of thought she was crazy myself, but agreed to it anyway. And I’ve never once regretted it.”

“You guys thinking about having more kids?” Aria asked. She’d been thinking a lot about it herself. She didn’t want Nicky to be an only child, but she wasn’t having much luck in the love department so if she wanted another baby she’d likely be doing it alone.

Callie took a moment before answering. She didn’t want to say yes right now because of the decision she’d made with Arizona about not telling everyone until they had something to tell. And they hadn’t even started trying just yet. Callie figured they’d wait until after Arizona’s boards so that they would have more time together.

“We’ve talked about it. It’s a definite possibility.” It was enough of an answer to satisfy curiosity without revealing anything. “What about you?” she asked, more to make conversation than anything else. She wanted to know everything about her sister.

“I’ve been thinking about it, but being a single parent to one kid is hard. I can’t imagine going it alone with two.”

“You wouldn’t be alone,” Callie quickly assured her. “If it’s something you decide you really want, Arizona and I will be there for you. I know we didn’t start off on the best of terms, and that was my fault. I’d really like us to be friends though, sisters even.”

“I’d like that. And thank you.”

“No problem,” Callie said sincerely. “I better go check on all my patients before I go home,” she told Aria as soon as she realized what time it was. “I’d like to get out of here at a decent time today,” she smiled. “I’ll stop by tomorrow with the girls though.”

“Sounds good,” Aria responded. She was glad to spend so much time with Callie, but she knew the other woman was in the hospital to work. “I’ll see you tomorrow then.”

“Bye bye Nicky,” Callie added as she left the room. Just a quick check of her patients and she’d finally get to head home. And if she was lucky, she’d get to do some more “studying” with her wife.

 


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I’m so sorry for the extended wait for a new chapter. The closer it got to Christmas the less time I seemed to have to do anything. Plus I was suffering a bit of writer’s block. Hopefully I’ve worked through it now and can return to regular updates.

**Chapter 10**

The rumble of the bus was the only sound that could be heard as Callie and Arizona held each other tightly, neither of them wanted to let the other go. Sooner than either of them would have liked Arizona would board the bus and be gone for two full days and nights. It was the longest stretch of time they’d go without seeing each other since high school.

“I’m going to miss you and the girls so much,” Arizona whispered and held Callie even tighter in her arms. It had been hard to say goodbye to her daughters earlier that morning, and now doing the same with Callie was even harder.

“It’s only two days,” Callie tried to reassure her. “You’ll kill those boards and then you’ll be home,” she stated with confidence. There was no way Arizona wouldn’t pass, Callie knew it.

“Yeah, yeah,” Arizona nodded her head, trying to make herself believe. “Or I could just fly down tomorrow in time for the test. You did,” she pointed out.

“Different circumstances entirely,” Callie argued. The days before her own test had not been good ones. In fact they had Callie freaking out, and it had nothing to do with her boards.

_Arizona woke up alone and stretched her body and then climbed out of bed. She looked at the clock and realized Callie should have left for the hospital over an hour ago, but her wife hadn’t said goodbye, which was weird. As she opened the door into the hallway she could hear the faint sounds of cartoons coming from downstairs, which meant Lex was awake._

_She peeked into Amelia’s room and found her eldest daughter still sound asleep, which was good, she really needed it. She placed a kiss on Amelia’s forehead, checking her temperature. She was still a little hot, but not as high as it had been the night before. She left the room quietly, not wanting to disturb her daughter’s slumber._

_Just as she predicted, Alexia was sacked out on the couch with the remote in one hand and a cup of milk in the other. “Morning, Lex. You want some breakfast?”_

_“Mommy’s cooking waffles,” the girl answered._

_“Mommy’s still here?” she asked surprised. She didn’t give her daughter a chance to respond, instead headed to the kitchen to find her wife. “Calliope, what are you still doing here? You need to leave before you miss your flight.”_

_“I can’t leave right now. What if Amelia’s fever spikes again? What if she needs to go to the hospital?” Callie asked. She continued to make breakfast for her family, but Arizona could see her mind was somewhere else. Her wife was freaking out. She wasn’t sure if it was more about the test or Amelia._

_“Amelia’s going to be fine. It’s just the flu. And I’ve taken the next few days off. I’ve got this,” Arizona said. She put a reassuring hand on Callie’s face, forcing her to look at her. “You need to go take that test.”_

_“What if it’s more than the flu though? She’s been so healthy, but she was a preemie. What if it’s finally catching up to her? It happens you know,” Callie rambled._

_Arizona did know, she’d seen it several times with some of her patients. They’d been fine for most of their childhood and then all the sudden started having a lot of health problems. But still, there was no evidence that was what was happening with Amelia._

_“Callie, look at me. She…will…be…fine,” Arizona stressed each word. “She’s got the best kid doctor there is as a mom,” she smiled._

_This got a grin from Callie as well. “Rather full of ourselves aren’t we?”_

_“Maybe just a little. But seriously, we’ll be fine. You need to catch your flight.”_

_“Not gonna happen,” Callie told her. “I talked to dad this morning. He’s already made arrangements for me to take his jet tomorrow and get there in time for the test and then come back right after.”_

_“Callie,” Arizona groaned, knowing she’d already lost. “Do you really think that’s a good idea? You need to go now and have time to relax and prepare. Get yourself in the right mindset.”_

_“Do you think I’ll be relaxed knowing what’s going on at home?” Callie questioned back. “I know you can handle this, I know that. But I can’t feel good about leaving my baby girl when she’s sick. I’d be freaking out the whole time.”_

_“Alright, but you need to take it easy too. I’m here, you don’t need to take everything on yourself,” Arizona ordered. Callie would hate herself if something happened and she wasn’t home, she knew that. But she’d also be pissed with herself if she didn’t pass her boards. She’d studied too hard._

_“Fine, you win. Now go get Lex, breakfast is ready.”_

_After telling her youngest that it was time to eat, Arizona ran up the stairs to check on Amelia a second time. The girl was still passed out so she left her alone. When she woke up they’d have to try and get her to eat something. Or at the very least drink something. Her poor little girl was miserable._

_For the next 24 hours, Arizona tried to beat Callie to the punch every time something needed to be done, giving her wife plenty of time to relax. On occasion she quizzed her, keeping Callie’s brain fresh and ready. Helping Callie study gave her an advantage as well in preparing for when it was her turn._

_One of Carlos’ limos picked Callie up the next day and took her straight to the airport. Another limo driver was waiting for her as she exited the plane, taking her straight to the hotel where the test was being held._

_As the examiners gave her each scenario, she forced herself to concentrate on the question. It was hard, but she managed to make it through feeling like she’d done well. But as soon as they were finished, she was out the door and on her way home. Her mind already back in worried mom mode._

“And I was right all along, Amelia was just fine,” Arizona gloated as they both came back from the memory of the year before.

“Oh hush you,” Callie told Arizona and placed a kiss on her lips. “Mm, I love you.”

“I love you, too,” Arizona sighed. They kissed again, this time deep and passionately. The next two nights without the other was going to be hard. They never slept well alone.

“Take the girls and go see Aria and Nicky while I’m gone. It’ll distract you,” Arizona suggested. While Nicky was still in the hospital, they’d brought the girls in several times to get to know their cousin. Even with a significant age difference, Amelia and Alexia had enjoyed getting to know their younger cousin. They hadn’t had time to check in on him since he’d been released however.

“Maybe I will,” Callie smiled, already thinking about seeing her nephew again. Although things were still a little awkward between the sisters, Callie had no such feelings with Nicky. Both she and Arizona had quickly fallen in love with the little boy. “You and Lexie can keep each other distracted too,” she suggested back. Looking over at their friends, they could see Mark and Lexie were having a hard time saying goodbye as well.

“Definitely,” Arizona agreed.

“Go kick that test’s ass. Then when you come home we can start planning our little vacation to Tim’s and start on the baby plan.”

“I like the sound of that,” Arizona grinned. They’d decided not to even begin trying until after Arizona got home. Neither woman could wait though, both excited to add to their little family.

“Good. Now get on that bus,” Callie ordered, giving Arizona’s behind a little swat.

Arizona smiled and saluted. “Yes, ma’am.” She loved the playful bossy side of her wife. Callie was always the more serious of the two so she really appreciated the times Callie acted like this. “I love you,” she said again, never getting tired of saying those three words.

“Love you, too,” Callie responded as she picked up Arizona’s bag off the ground and handed it to her. She pointed to the door on the bus, “Now go, before I drag you off somewhere.”

A shiver went down Arizona’s spine at the implication, but she did as she was told and climbed onto the bus. She found a window seat and sat down, looking back at Callie. The two pressed their hands on the glass in one last silent goodbye. A minute later, Lexie sat down beside Arizona and the bus was pulling out of the parking lot.

**~CA~**

Keeping the girls entertained while Arizona was gone was harder than Callie thought it would be. Callie was more of the caretaker, while Arizona was more of the entertainer. She was the one always coming up with new activities for them to do as a family. Callie had taken it for granted, but she wouldn’t any longer.

“When is Mama coming home?” Alexia had whined over breakfast that morning. They all knew the answer to that, but it didn’t make any of them feel any better.

“Tomorrow morning,” Callie reminded her. “Quit playing with your food and eat,” she told her youngest as she watched Alexia dig her spoon in her Cream of Wheat, and then dump it back into her bowl.

“Mama always gives me brown sugar,” Lex pouted.

Callie groaned but got up and went over to the cupboard and pulled the container out that held the brown sugar. She dumped a spoonful in her daughter’s cereal before sitting back down to eat her own breakfast.

“Can we call Mama and wish her luck?” Amelia asked. She too missed her blonde mother. Often times one of their mothers would have to spend the night at the hospital, but the other mother would always take them over to the hospital to see them. It didn’t feel right having their Mama in another state where they couldn’t even visit her.

Callie looked at the clock, trying to remember what time Arizona said her first session started. “She might already be taking her test. Why don’t the three of us take a picture together and send it to her instead,” she suggested.

“Good idea,” Amelia squealed and jumped out of her seat, racing out of the room.

“Amelia Robbins, where are you going? Get back here and eat,” Callie yelled at her retreating daughter.

Amelia ignored her, returning a minute later with a piece of paper and a marker. She bent over the table, blocking Alexia and Callie from seeing what she was doing and she ignored their questions, concentrating on her task.

“There, done,” she said a few minutes later. She held up the paper so that her mother and sister could read what she had written. It read, “Good Luck Mama. We Love You. Love, Alexia, Amelia, and Mommy.”

“Good idea sweetie, but let me see it for a second.” Callie took the paper from her daughter and the marker as well. Flipping the paper over, she traced the words her daughter had written so the message could be seen backwards on the other side.

“Why’d you do that?” Lex asked curiously.

“Because if we want a picture with all three of us holding this sign, we’re going to have to do it in the mirror. This way it won’t be backwards in the picture,” Callie explained.

“Oh I get it,” Lex smiled. She thought she had the smartest mothers on the planet. They seemed to know everything.

“Okay, let’s go up to my room so we can use the big closet mirror,” Callie suggested, breakfast now forgotten for all three of them. She’d just have to make sure and feed them a big lunch later.

She had Amelia stand in the middle, holding her sign with Lex and herself on either side, both with a hand also on the paper. With one hand, she pointed her phone at the mirror, lining it up as best as she could. The first photo turned out blurry, but the second one turned out pretty well, so she sent that one off. She could already see the smile on Arizona’s face when she got their message.

**~CA~**

Two states over, Arizona took a deep breath as she stepped out of the hotel room she’d just spent the last several hours in. She wasn’t sure how she did in that first session, but she felt it had gone fairly well.

She knew she wasn’t at her best right now. She’d tossed and turned most of the night before, craving for the warm body she was used to sleeping next to. She’d briefly let it pass her mind to crawl in bed with Lexie who was sharing a room with her. Not for anything sexual, just so that she wouldn’t feel so alone. But even as innocent as it would have been, she didn’t want to have to explain herself to Lexie, or either of their partners later. Instead she’d pulled one of the pillows along her side and tried to pretend it was her wife. It worked just enough to get her to sleep finally.

She headed down the stairs hoping she could find something to eat. She’d skipped breakfast, too nervous to eat. It was a decision she was now starting to regret. They weren’t scheduled for a lunch break until after the second session. Her stomach wouldn’t make it that long. One of the hotels ballrooms had been reserved as a place for all the surgeons to socialize, so she headed there hoping there would be some appetizers like there had been the night before.

Apparently she wasn’t the only one who’d had the same idea. Upon entering the room, she found several of her peers surrounding the tables. Spotting Lexie, she headed towards her. The other woman was currently trying to decide between grabbing a banana or an apple. “I’d go for the banana,” Arizona told her as she grabbed one for herself. “I always seem to have better focus after I eat one of these.”

Lexie smiled and grabbed one of the yellow fruits as well. The two found a table and sat down for a few minutes to enjoy their snack. “How’d your session go?” Lexie asked.

“Not as well as I’d hoped,” Arizona admitted. “I think I passed, but I definitely didn’t do my best.”

“Me either,” Lexie agreed. “Did your examiners make you question even the things you knew you had right?”

“Oh yeah. Every time they asked ‘Are you sure’ it made me go back over my answer, even those things I’ve known the answer to since med school.”

“Glad it wasn’t just me,” Lexie sighed. Putting her head back, she closed her eyes, trying to prepare herself for the next round.

Arizona wished she could relax, but after that first session, she was even more nervous to go back in that room. Callie had told her it wasn’t going to be easy, but she had no idea it was going to be this hard. She missed her wife, and her daughters.

She pulled out her phone just so she could look at their pictures. She was surprised she had a message from Callie. Her phone was on silent and she hadn’t felt it vibrate. She opened the conversation and smiled at the picture of her three girls wishing her luck. Suddenly she had all the confidence she needed. She headed straight for the elevators, reading to get the next session out of the way. She was going to pass this test, and then she was going home to her family to celebrate.


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11**

With her head on the back of the couch, Callie slowly closed her eyes, sleep pulling at her. She never could sleep very well without Arizona, so she was beyond tired. It was also tiring to be the sole parent to their two daughters these past couple of days. She just wanted a nap.

A dip on the cushion beside her alerted her to the fact that she was no longer alone. Opening her eyes, she tried to smile behind a yawn at seeing Aria beside her. “You look exhausted,” Aria commented as she handed over a mug full of coffee.

“I’m sorry,” Callie apologized, feeling a tad guilty. It wasn’t exactly polite to fall asleep in someone else’s house. “It’s not easy to sleep without Arizona beside me after almost 13 years together. Plus our girls are being particularly grumpy without her.”

“Its fine,” Aria waved it off. “I could see how these last couple of days haven’t been easy. When does she come home?”

“Her flight is scheduled to land a little after nine tomorrow morning. And it can’t come soon enough,” Callie told her. “It’s crazy how much I miss her,” she sighed. Bringing the girls over to Aria’s seemed to be enough to distract them, but so far it was only making her miss her wife even more.

Aria smiled at Callie sweetly. She hoped she’d find a love like Callie and Arizona’s someday. She would consider herself extremely lucky just to find someone who loved her half as much as they loved each other.

Through the open doorway that led to the kitchen the two women could hear laughter from their children. Falling into silence, they watched the two girls helping their younger cousin put together a puzzle. They didn’t let the fact that Nicky couldn’t move very fast with the cast on his leg stop him from having some fun.

Callie couldn’t help the grin that stole over her face as she pictured the same scene within their own home only instead of Nicky, Amelia and Alexia would be helping their brother or sister. Although she wouldn’t mind having another little girl, she was really hoping their next child would be a boy. She loved the time she got to spend with JoJo and now Nicky, and wanted that for her own family.

“Our kids certainly seem to get along,” Aria commented, breaking the silence.

“They sure do,” Callie agreed. She watched as Amelia helped Nicky flip a piece around so that it was facing the right direction before showing him just where to put it. “It’s a relief actually. Gives me hope that the girls will be okay when we bring another baby into the family.”

“When?” Aria asked.

“I uh…  mean if,” Callie answered as she berated herself for not watching her words.

Aria raised her eyebrow at Callie, not believing her for a second. One simply did not make that slip of the tongue without reason. She wasn’t, however, sure if it was her place to press her about it yet or not. They were still trying to figure this whole sister thing out.

Callie sighed, she’d screwed up and now the cat was out of the bag. “Yes, we haven’t started trying yet, but we planned to as soon as Arizona comes home. We aren’t telling people yet though, you know, just in case we run into trouble.”

“It’ll stay our secret then,” Aria told her. It felt good to finally know something about Callie that nobody else knew. She wondered that if they had been raised together, if this was something Callie would have come to her with anyway. But then again, neither of them might have been sitting here if they had, their lives would have been completely different. “Can I ask you something kind of personal? You don’t have to answer if it’s none of my business,” she quickly assured.

Callie looked hard at Aria, trying to determine what she’d ask. She had a fairly good clue, but she nodded her head to continue.

“You told me how you ended up pregnant with Amelia, but I’ve been wondering about Alexia. She looks so much like the both of you.”

Callie shot a look towards the kitchen, making sure the girls were still busy and not listening. One of these days they’d have to explain to the girls how they came to be, but she really didn’t want today to be that day. That was something her and Arizona wanted to do together.

She turned back to Aria once she was sure it would be okay to answer her. “Arizona has an older brother. He’s our donor,” she answered simply.

Aria nodded her head in understanding. She looked back at Lex with new eyes. The girl had Callie’s coloring, but her facial features were all Arizona, right down to the dimples. Both of the girls were going to be beautiful when they grew up, they already were. “They’re beautiful girls,” she told Callie.

Callie thanked her. There was no greater compliment you could give her than one about her girls. They were her greatest treasure. “You know, it’s funny,” Callie started, making conversation. “Amelia has always been a Mama’s girl, and Alexia has always been my little shadow.”

Aria smiled, reading between the lines. She of course knew Callie carried Amelia, and she’d seen the pictures of a pregnant Arizona so she knew the other woman had carried Alexia. But it was the opposite parent their children clung too.

“Some days I wish we could go back to when they were little. I know neither of us regrets doing what we needed to, to become surgeons, but it wasn’t without sacrifice.” Aria stayed quiet, letting Callie talk. She had a feeling her sister didn’t really have anyone other than Arizona to talk about this stuff with. “Amelia and Alexia are as close as two sisters can get, but at times Amelia unconsciously started to parent her sister. And that’s partly our fault. I’m not saying we forced her to do that, it just sort of happened. Like Arizona and I would be busy studying while the girls played and Amelia would come up and tell us Lex was stinky, her way of saying she needed a diaper change.”

“I’m sure that’s normal for all siblings,” Aria tried to reassure.

A part of Callie knew that was true, but the other part would always feel a little bit guilty for the roles their children took upon themselves. She wasn’t the only one though. She remembered Arizona being as equally worried.

_“Do you think we should take Lex to a speech therapist?” Callie asked one morning over breakfast. It was the weekend so they had no classes or any homework that was pressing. They were looking forward to spending some time together as a family._

_“What? Why?” Arizona questioned back. She knew why Callie was suggesting it, but she didn’t want to admit there was a problem with their daughter._

_“She’s 18 months old and still barely speaks more than a few words. By this age Amelia was speaking a few full sentences,” Callie reminded her._

_“Every child does things in their own time,” Arizona dismissed the comparison. Alexia wasn’t talking much, but she was doing pretty much everything else Amelia had done by that age. Arizona wanted to believe their youngest was simply a quiet child._

_“I know. But it doesn’t lessen the worry telling myself that,” Callie argued. “Maybe it wouldn’t be a bad idea to get an outsiders point of view._

_“Maybe,” Arizona begrudgedly admitted._

_Although the conversation didn’t end there. The two fought about it for several weeks before Arizona finally caved in. She still didn’t want to believe there could be something wrong with her little girl. Alexia was perfect in her opinion._

_The day the speech therapist, Lydia, came to their home, Arizona let her in with great hesitation. While the young woman spent some time with Alexia, Arizona stayed close, ready to intervene if she felt the need._

_After observing Alexia and the family for a little while, she sat down with the two mothers to give them her assessment. “I don’t believe there’s anything physically or psychologically wrong with your daughter,” she started._

_“See, I told you she was fine,” Arizona quickly told Callie._

_“However,” the Lydia went on. “I do believe there might be a reason she doesn’t feel the need to talk. Do your two girls have separate activities or are they always together?”_

_“They are pretty much always together,” Callie answered, fearful of where this was going. “Is that a bad thing?”_

_“No, no, it’s not a bad thing,” Lydia quickly reassured. “However, I do think part of why she isn’t talking is because she doesn’t need to, Amelia does all the talking for her. My two suggestions for you is first to encourage her to use her words when she wants or needs something.”_

_“We do,” Arizona quickly defended. “Or at least we try to,” she admitted. They probably didn’t encourage it as much as they should, instead just taking Amelia’s word for it and doing it without giving it much thought._

_“The second thing you could do is give them some time apart. Split up and take them to separate activities, give them both some one-on-one time with each of you. This will allow Alexia to have more room to grow on her own, but not leave Amelia left out. If you don’t see an improvement in the next few months then we’ll reassess, but I’m confident it should work,” Lydia told them, taking her leave soon after._

_With determination, the two mothers did exactly as Lydia had suggested. They started a new routine on Tuesdays and Thursdays where they had mommy/daughter dates. Even just a few hours of one-on-one time with each of their mothers quickly improved their family. And within only a few weeks Alexia began to talk more._

“Tim is super protective of Arizona,” Callie told Aria, pulling herself out of the memory. “He probably always will be, but he also extended that to me when we got married. So don’t mess with me,” she teasingly warned.

“I’ll remember that,” Aria smiled.

The two sisters began to reminisce about their childhoods, sharing stories with each other about things they remembered. They had so much to tell each other that they never ran out of things to talk about. Eventually they made it into the kitchen and worked together to prepare a meal for their three starving children.

While they waited for their dinner, the three cousins moved into the living room, pulling out all of Nicky’s legos and began to build the biggest castle they could. While the little boy hated not being able to move like he was used to, he relished in the attention he got from his cousins.

When they finally made it home, Callie instantly knew something wasn’t right. She couldn’t put her finger on what it was exactly. There was just had a feeling in her gut. Her daughters didn’t seem to sense anything though so she shrugged it off and pulled into the garage.

As soon as the car was off, the two girls were out the door and heading into the kitchen, both wondering aloud what snacks they could find. Callie chuckled at the thought. They’d just eaten and they already wanted more.

 As soon as she entered the house, she realized what was bugging her. There had been a glow in the living room window. A glow that shouldn’t be there. At the same time she realized this, she heard squealing coming from that room and quickly ran to see what the commotion was. There in the middle of the room, with their daughters on either side of her was her wife.

“What are you doing home already?” Callie asked with a smile as she walked up and pecked Arizona on the lips.

“I couldn’t stand the thought of being away one more night so I called Carlos and had him get me home as soon as I was done with my test,” Arizona explained. She pulled herself out of her daughter’s arms so she could wrap them around her wife and get a real welcome home. “I couldn’t sleep without you,” she whispered in Callie’s ear.

“Mmm. Me either,” Callie whispered back. “I missed you.”

“I missed you, too.”

“What about us?” Alexia pouted.

Arizona smiled and tickled Alexia’s side. “Of course I missed you guys too. I didn’t like being away from you two for a minute,” she told both girls. She gave each of them a second hug and a kiss to the forehead. “And I’d much rather be home with my family when they post if I passed or not then in a hotel surrounded by strangers,” she added.

“You’ll pass,” Callie assured her. “But yes, I like that idea too.”

“Does that mean we get to stay up?” Lex asked excitedly. Both girls already knew that the results would be posted after midnight.

“I don’t know,” Callie started as she thought it over.

Arizona turned her best pout to Callie, knowing her wife was always the more reasonable one of the two. “Come on, they don’t have school in the morning and we’re both off. What’s the harm? We’ll watch some movies or we could have a game night while we wait,” she suggested.

“Alright fine,” Callie agreed. “But you need to go get your pajamas on now and as soon as the results are in you go to bed.”

“Yay!” all three of them shouted. Amelia and Alexia ran upstairs to get ready for bed, not giving their mom a chance to change her mind.

Arizona watched her girls go with a smile. When they were gone, she turned back to Callie and pulled her back into her arms and gave her a deep kiss. “As soon as they are asleep, you and I are going to celebrate, because I kicked ass,” she whispered.

A shiver ran down Callie’s spin as she thought of what was going to come. She never had any doubt Arizona would pass, but this was the first time Arizona had confidence in herself. “I missed you so much. You can never go away again,” Callie told her.

Arizona laid her head on her wife’s shoulder, letting herself breath in Callie’s scent. “I don’t plan on going anywhere, ever again without you guys. That was torture. I almost crawled into bed with Lexie.”

Callie pulled back, “You what?”

Arizona smiled and swatted her wife’s shoulder. “Not like that you goof. I couldn’t sleep without you holding me. I wanted to cuddle,” Arizona pouted.

Callie briefly thought about torturing Arizona a little bit, but she knew she never had to worry about Arizona. Especially with Lexie. The thought was actually kind of funny in a way. “You’re so cute,” Callie told her instead as she kissed her on the forehead. She was about to go for a real kiss when loud footsteps came down the stairs.

“So what are we doing, games or movies?” Amelia asked as the two girls bounced back into the room, unaware of the moment they’d interrupted between their parents.

“Get a deck of cards,” Arizona told Amelia. “It’s time you learned to play some poker,” she said with mischief in her eyes. “Lex go get the thing of Oreos, the container of popcorn, and the bag of marshmallows I have hidden in the back of the pantry. We’re going to need some currency.”

“Don’t you think they are a little young for that?” Callie asked, not believing her wife had just suggested teaching their daughters to gamble.

“Nah, Dad taught me and Tim when we were like five and six years old. And his dad did the same before that. I’m way behind.”

Callie could do nothing but roll her eyes as her wife set everything up on the kitchen table. Arizona began explaining the rules as she dealt the cards to the four of them. By the third hand Amelia had a sizable stash of snacks in front of her, and by the tenth hand she had almost cleaned out Arizona. The blonde was more than certain this was more than beginners luck.

“Alright who taught you how to play?” Arizona asked, looking hard at her daughter.

Amelia beamed at her mother. “Uncle Tim,” she answered without fanfare. “He couldn’t believe you hadn’t already taught us, so he did when he came up last time.”

“Ooh I’m going to have a word with him next time I talk to him. Or I could teach JoJo a few things of my own,” Arizona thought aloud, already scheming about exacting a little revenge. She knew Tim hadn’t just taught the girls to play, he’d taught them how to bluff without Arizona catching them. For that he needed a little payback.

“Arizona,” Callie tried to warn, but it was too late. There would be no stopping her wife now. She just hoped that their war wouldn’t escalate too much.

The game continued on, this time Arizona didn’t pull any punches. She had taken it easy on them before, but no more. Callie didn’t even bother to try. Her wife and daughters were to going at each other hard. She gladly pushed all her stash in the middle and watched as Amelia took the pot again.

The alarm on Arizona’s phone went off, stopping them all in the middle of betting. The results should be up now, all she had to do was pull it up. She reached for the phone, but at the last second she pulled her hand back. “I can’t do it. You look,” she told Callie.

Snatching her wife’s phone off the table, Callie pulled up the web page and scanned through it. “Well did I pass?” Arizona asked anxiously when Callie continued to sit there not saying anything.

“Well I’m sorry to say,” Callie started with a hint of sadness. Arizona turned her head down, fearing what was coming. “I won’t get to see you in light blue scrubs any more, it’s all navy from here on out.”

“I passed?”

Callie smiled and pulled Arizona into her arms. “You passed.”


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Totally planned to have this up earlier but then of course my computer decided to crash on me. Should have a new one tomorrow, but next week I'm moving again so there likely won't be an update. Sorry, I promise to try and get one as soon as I possibly can.

**Chapter 12**

Arizona smiled as she wandered down the hall towards Ortho. Callie was the one that more often came to her wife’s floor to visit. It was harder for Arizona to get away from her patients, especially now that she was a fellow. However, she had a reason for this visit.

She had checked the board before she wandered this way to make sure Callie hadn’t been pulled into surgery. She found the other woman easily. Her wife was bent over the nurse’s station, chatting with one of her favorites, Arizona thought her name was Stacey, but she wasn’t sure.

She snuck up behind her wife and wrapped her arms around the older woman. She placed a kiss in the crook of her neck, taking in the scent that was distinctly Callie.

Callie grinned, knowing instantly who was behind her. She leaned back into the other woman’s embrace. “Hey you,” she greeted, tilting her head so they could share a peck on the lips. “What are you doing here?”

Arizona rubbed her nose in Callie’s hair. “Let’s go to your office and maybe I’ll tell you,” she whispered.

Dirty thoughts filled Callie’s mind at Arizona’s words. She grabbed the blonde’s hand and quickly pulled her down the hall that led to her office. Pushing Arizona into the room, she closed the door with a lock before she trapped Arizona up against the wall and kissed her deeply. “How much time do you have?”

“Forty-five minutes, give her take,” Arizona answered as she pushed Callie’s lab coat down her arms, letting it drop to the floor.

“Good,” Callie whispered as she backed away from the wall and pulled Arizona with her over to her couch. After getting herself comfortable, she pulled Arizona to straddle her lap, before kissing her again. Their tongues battled in a familiar dance, both wanting to be the one in control. “You’re so damn hot in these scrubs,” Callie moaned as she slipped her hands under Arizona’s top.

“This really isn’t what I came down here for,” Arizona whispered as Callie pulled first her own top off, then Arizona’s.

“It’s not?” Callie asked but didn’t stop what she was doing.

“Nope.”

“You want to stop?”

“Not on your life,” Arizona smiled as she pulled at Callie’s pants, causing the other woman to lift up so they could get them off.

Just as Callie was reaching for the tie on Arizona’s pants, one of their pagers went off. “Shit!” she groaned. “Whose is it?”

Arizona slid off Callie’s lap and pulled her pager out of her coat. “It’s mine,” she answered. Picking her shirt up off the floor, she pulled it over her head, trying to cool her raging libido. “It’s the ER, a trauma coming in. You’re off soon aren’t you?”

“Yeah, another hour,” Callie told her.

“I guess I’ll see you at home then,” Arizona sighed, knowing she likely wouldn’t be done in the ER before Callie was off. “I love you,” she said as she placed a quick peck to Callie’s lips. She’d have to talk to her tonight after the kids went to bed now.

“Love you, too,” Callie called out at the closing door.

**~CA~**

Arizona sighed in relief as she walked out of the OR. Rolling her head around, she stretched her neck, feeling better after being bent over an eight-year-old little girl for several hours. The girl had come in battered and bruised after being attacked by a neighbor boy. She couldn’t believe the damage one child could do to another.

They’d almost lost the girl once, but managed to get her back. They’d keep her in the PICU for a few days, but Arizona was confident she’d make it, barring any further complications.

She scrubbed out quickly, wanting to get home to her family. If she left soon she’d make it in time for dinner.

As she headed towards the attending’s lounge to change out of her scrubs, she briefly remembered her first official day entering that room.

_Arizona paused outside the door to the attending’s lounge, nervous and excited to enter it for the first official time. Of course she’d been in there on several occasions with Callie, but today she’d would be going in there as an attending herself, equal to the other doctors in the room._

_She felt Callie come up behind her, and reached out, taking her wife’s hand within her own. Callie offered her nothing but support as they both walked in together. Callie pulled her over to the cubbies and found her name on the one to left of Callie’s. She smiled to see a brand new lab coat inside, embroidered with her new position under her name. Beneath that held her very first pair of navy blue scrubs._

_They had both done it. They had made it through med school and residency together. All these years later they stood side by side in their navy scrubs, a clear sign that they had finally made it as surgeons. Something they had dreamed about since they were teenagers._

It had been a couple of weeks since that first day, but it was still as exciting as that first time as she changed quickly back into her street clothes. Slipping her shoes on, she checked her purse to make sure her car keys were still inside before heading towards the parking lot.

It seemed like such a waste to drive two cars to work every day when she worked in the same building as her partner. But with their kind of careers there really was no way of telling what their schedules would be like from day to day.

The music didn’t do much to keep her company on the quick drive home. She was grateful that even though they had to drive separately, the hospital was little more than 15 minutes away in good traffic.  

Arizona slipped into the kitchen from the garage and found all three of her favorite girls just sitting down to dinner.

“Mama’s home,” Alexia squealed excitedly and jumped up from her chair so that she could give Arizona a hug.

After Lex released her, Arizona moved to give Amelia a kiss on top of her head, and then shared a peck with Callie. “Let me go drop this stuff off then I’ll come back and join you guys,” she told her family. She flew up the stairs and dropped her purse off on the dresser. After which she kicked her shoes off into the closet. By the time she made it back down to the kitchen a plate was waiting for her at her spot on the table. “Mm, smells delicious,” she announced as she took a seat.

“Mom said you had a little girl that was really hurt. Is she doing better now?” Amelia asked after the girls had filled their mothers in on their day.

“She’s much better now. I got to fix up some of her organs and we had to call the new neuro guy to fix her head, but she should be fine,” she told them. At first it was a little weird the interest both girls seemed to show in their mothers’ jobs, but now neither woman was phased in their questions.

“Who’s the new neuro guy?” Amelia asked, her interest spiking.

“I believe his name was Dr. Shephard,” Arizona answered, getting a nod from Callie that she thought that was right too.

“Is he hot?”

Arizona groaned, sad that her eldest was old enough to start taking an interest in dating. She wanted her to stay a little girl forever. “I didn’t notice,” Arizona shrugged with mischief. “No one even comes close to your mother,” she smiled at Callie.

“Gross,” Lex moaned. She was at that stage where any sign of affection between her parents was considered embarrassing. Although a small part of her knew that what her mothers had together was really special. She’d much rather have her parents together, then some of her friends whose parents were divorced.

“You just wait ‘til your older and see if you still think it’s gross,” Callie told their youngest. “And remember, your Mama and I will have no problem getting you back with the first guy, or girl you fall for,” she smiled.

Callie and Arizona shared a knowing smile when their daughter just rolled her eyes and went back to eating. Not that they’d pressure their children either way, so long as they were happy that’s all they wanted for them. And while Amelia was showing a definite interest in boys, they still weren’t sure who she’d end up with. They did have their suspicions about Lex, however. Only time would tell, but from around the age of six they had started to believe their baby might just have a thing for the ladies.

“You two finish your homework?” Callie asked as the four Robbins’ picked up their plates and headed towards the sink.

“Yep. Yep,” Lex answered. “Can I get on Netflix?”

“Only for an hour,” Callie told her with a tone letting her know she was serious.

“Awe, nuts,” Lex muttered, but headed towards the living room.

Callie laughed at her retreating daughter, speaking loud enough that she could be heard in the other room. “And that’s why! Someone has been watching one too many Full House reruns. And what about you?” she turned to her other daughter.

“I just have to do some reading for English and then I’m done.”

“Go do it then. Mama and I will take care of clean up tonight.” Amelia’s main chore was helping with the dishes, while Lex was taking care of the garbage and vacuuming the house once a week. But more than anything they just wanted their kids to be kids, so they let them off the hook more often than not. They’d had to grow up fast themselves, they didn’t want the same for their children.

**~CA~**

Hours later the two women had finally said goodnight to both kids and made their way into their room, tossing clothes as they went. They were both more than ready for the day to finally be over.

“What was it you wanted earlier?” Callie asked around her toothbrush as Arizona washed her face. She had forgotten all about her wife’s earlier visit until just now.

Arizona sat the washcloth down and turned to look at Callie. “I um, well I was going to ask you first, but then I just decided to stop at the store on the way home and grab one anyway,” she rambled.

“Grabbed one of what?” Callie asked curiously. She tried to think back to any conversations that might give a clue as to what Arizona was talking about, but nothing came to mind.

Arizona wandered out of the bathroom and grabbed the box she’d placed in her purse earlier. She headed back the way she had come and handed the box to Callie. Her wife read the writing, slowly processing what it said.

“An ovulation testing kit?”

“Well we talked about trying to get pregnant right here at home so I figured we’d need one of those at some point. I also called the sperm bank to see what we needed to do. They said since we are simply using them for storage on stuff we already own, we can pick some up whenever we want, no appointment necessary.”

A giant grin took over Callie’s face as she wrapped her arms tightly around Arizona. The other woman had made the next move for them, getting them that one step closer to another baby. “You are the best wife ever!”

“Don’t you forget it,” Arizona smiled and kissed Callie. She had been a little afraid Callie would be upset she’d done those things without talking to her about it first, but apparently Callie didn’t care. “We’ll need to wait at least a few more days until we start testing you. But I don’t think it should be to long before we can try for that baby.”

“I can’t wait,” Callie told her and kissed her again. Their mouths opened instinctively. After over 13 years together it was as natural as breathing for the both of them. “You know, we never did get to finish what we started earlier.”

“This is very true,” Arizona agreed, dimples popping as she pulled Callie back into their bedroom. “Beside we should practice baby making.”

Callie laughed, but went with it. She pushed Arizona down on the bed, crawling on top of her. Holding Arizona’s face between her hands, she smiled as she leaned down and gave her a gentle kiss. She’d never tire of the feeling of Arizona beneath her.

Arizona flipped them over, pushing her body flush down into Callie’s. “If we’re practicing baby making, then you should be on the bottom,” she smirked.

“You are such a dork,” Callie told her. “But you’re a very cute dork.”

Soon their naked bodies were soaked in sweat as they explored each other in a familiar dance. Every touch was a declaration of the love between them. Arizona kissed her way down Callie’s body, stopping to suckle each of her nipples, then ran her tongue down the caramel skin, dipping it into Callie’s belly button, before moving lower.

“No, no. Need you up here,” Callie moaned as Arizona moved even lower.

The blonde wanted nothing more than to taste her wife, but she wanted to do whatever Callie needed her to do, so she moved back up her body, kissing her deeply as her fingers slid deep into her wife. “Just like that,” Callie moaned again.

It didn’t take long before Callie was coming hard, her body trapping Arizona’s fingers within her while she rode out her high. Arizona kept her eyes focused on Callie’s, letting the brown eye’s tell her what Callie couldn’t say.

As her heart settled back down, Callie ran her hands softly along Arizona’s back, enjoying the closeness she felt to the other woman. “You do that again when we try for real and there’s no way we don’t make a baby,” she smiled up at Arizona.

Arizona smiled back, loving Callie’s confidence in her. “I hope so. I love you so much and I can’t wait to make a baby with you.” There was just something so exciting about the opportunity to make a baby right here in their bed, without doctors or medical procedures.

Not that making Alexia the way they had was any less special. It was just different. They did what they had to do so that Arizona could carry their child. Now they would do things different so Callie could carry this next child. It wouldn’t change how they felt about their child, it just made each situation special in its own way.

“I love you, too,” Callie said behind a yawn. She wanted to return the pleasure that Arizona had given her, but she was utterly exhausted. She vowed to do just that as she let her eyes close for a quick nap.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A new chapter I hope you all enjoy!

**Chapter 13**

Arizona took a hard look at the scans in front of her, trying to figure out what to do for the ten year old little girl that was lying in a medically induced coma down the hall. “I don’t even know where we should start,” she exclaimed in frustration. “Any ideas?” she asked Lexie who was her co-surgeon on the case.

“Me either,” Lexie admitted quietly. “We should probably start with damage control and then worry about the tumors.”

Arizona sighed, knowing that was the best course of action they could take right now. Their patient, Britney, had been in a car accident with her parents earlier that day. Although the girl had some internal injuries that would need to be fixed sooner rather than later, the accident itself might have been a blessing in disguise. Several scans upon her arrival in the ER showed multiple tumors growing around the girls organs.

Strong hands on her shoulders startled Arizona a while later. She had been so engrossed in planning out the surgery neither her nor Lexie had noticed they were no longer alone in the attending’s lounge.

The hands started to knead her shoulders and her body relaxed as Callie worked her magic. She placed her right hand over Callie’s sighing deeply as she tilted her head back to look up at her wife. “Hey beautiful.”

“Hi yourself,” Callie smiled and leaned down to place a kiss on Arizona’s lips. “You looked like you needed a little break,” she told her. “You had that look on your face you get when you’ve done too much thinking.”

“There’s a look for that?”

Callie nodded her head. “On you there definitely is. I’ve seen it often enough to know what it is.” She placed another kiss on Arizona’s lips before plopping into the seat beside her wife. She wrapped an arm around the blonde’s shoulder and pulled her into her body. “Difficult case?” she asked, pointing her head towards the file on the table.

“Yeah, but I’m more optimistic now that Lexie and I have had time to come up with a plan,” she told Callie, getting a nod of agreement from Lexie.

“Do you think you’ll be home on time tonight?”

“Barring any more emergencies I should be. All I have planned for the rest of the day is talk to the parents and get Britney scheduled for surgery tomorrow. Then check on my patients one last time,” Arizona answered. “Why?”

Callie leaned in close to Arizona’s ear and spoke quietly. “I took one of those tests this morning. I’m going to stop by the,” she looked at Lexie and saw she was watching them closely. “By the bank and take out a withdrawal. Maybe we could use it tonight,” she suggested.

“Oh, oh,” Arizona muttered as she realized what Callie was implying. “I think that’s a definite possibility then.”

“Good. I just have to take care of a couple things in my office then I’m out of here for the day. I’ll see you at home,” Callie smiled and kissed Arizona one last time before standing up. With a wave and a smile she was out the door.

“Do I want to know what that was about?” Lexie asked curiously.

“No. No you don’t,” Arizona answered and quickly changed the subject back to their patient. Now she couldn’t wait to get home.

**~CA~**

Arizona knew as soon as she pulled into her driveway that it would be just her and Callie that night. The house was to quiet for her girls to be inside. They really needed to do something nice for her parents one of these days to show their appreciation for everything. She had an idea, but she needed to run it by Callie first.

She shook that thought from her head, knowing tonight was not the night to be thinking about her parents. Instead, she needed to focus on her wife. They could possibly be making a baby later if all went according to plan.

The lights were dim as she entered the house through the kitchen. Soft music was coming from what sounded like the living room. She set her purse down on the counter and headed into the other room, smiling at the sight that greeted her. Callie had set up a picnic dinner in front of the fireplace. It was a little warm outside for a fire so she guessed they’d just be imagining one.

“Looks like someone wants to get laid,” Arizona teased in greeting as she moved further into the room.

“Most definitely,” Callie smirked back and pulled Arizona down on her lap and kissed her deeply. They both moaned as the feeling of being together took over them both. Neither woman thought she’d ever get used to the feeling of sharing moments like these with the other woman. “We really should eat something first,” Callie panted when they finally pulled away. “I have a feeling we’re going to need the energy.”

Arizona nodded in agreement, but made no move to get off Callie’s lap. If anything, she settled in more comfortably before grabbing one of the plates Callie had put together. They took turns feeding each other off the first plate and then the second until both were gone.

After the food was gone, Arizona sat the plates down away from them and moved to sit between Callie’s legs, leaning back into her. “This is nice,” she whispered as Callie’s arms wrapped around her, holding her tight.

Between work and their daughters it was hard to find time to spend together like this. It was something they both needed to make an effort and do more often. They were amazing surgeons and they were awesome mothers, but they needed to remind themselves that they were wives and partners too.

Callie placed a kiss on Arizona’s ear, then moved down to her neck and nuzzled her face into her wife’s shoulder. “I wanted tonight to be special. Not that Amelia’s or Alexia’s conception wasn’t in its own way,” she quickly added. Every child’s beginning had its own story and their girls were no exception.

“I know. You don’t have to explain. I get it,” Arizona reassured. She knew what Callie was trying to say. Without much thought, Arizona pulled out of Callie’s arms and stood up. “Nope, you stay here,” she ordered when Callie moved to follow.

“Where are you going?” Callie practically pouted. She had been enjoying the moment and she didn’t like that Arizona had broken it so suddenly.

“You’ll see. Just come upstairs in, ten minutes. No, better make that 15,” Arizona told her, and then she was gone.

As much as she hated it, Callie stayed right where she was and tried to listen for any sounds that might clue her in on what her wife was up to. Unfortunately their home was large enough that whatever Arizona was doing, couldn’t be heard from where Callie sat.

So instead she sat there in silent contemplation, thinking about all the moments in their lives that had led to them being right where they were. Her life at times felt like a fairytale. She was still insanely in love with her high school sweetheart. How many people could say that?

For years, even after they were married, she had worried that one day Arizona would wake up and resent Callie for all the responsibility that had rested on her shoulders. But Arizona had never wavered in her love for Callie or Amelia. It wasn’t until Alexia was conceived that Callie finally believed that Arizona was exactly where she wanted to be, and she would never regret a moment of it.

When time was finally up, she hurried up the stairs, anxious to see what her wife had been up to. When their bedroom turned up empty, she headed towards the master bath. What she found inside made her whole body go on high alert. She shouldn’t have been surprised to find her wife naked in the bathtub, surrounded by several dozen flickering candles, but she was. Even if Arizona loved sharing a bath together. It was her favorite way to relax them both.

Without invitation, Callie stripped her clothes off and climbed into the tub. She was actually surprised Arizona was already inside, because usually the blonde liked the do the undressing herself. She didn’t worry over it, however, and laid herself back between Arizona’s legs.

She closed her eyes and let the feeling of Arizona running her hands over her stomach and breasts consume her. With gentle touches, Arizona washed Callie’s body and hair, taking care of her wife in the best way she knew how.

When Callie tried to return the favor, Arizona shook her head no. “Tonight should be all about you,” she whispered. It was Callie’s body that would be making their baby. She was only there to aid the process, so she was determined to do whatever she could to make sure Callie was happy and satisfied.

When the water grew cold, Arizona climbed out from behind Callie and grabbed their biggest towel and wrapped it around herself holding it open so Callie could climb in with her. Her hands worked to dry them both off and Callie could only smile and place small kisses where she could on Arizona. “You take such good care of me,” she whispered.

“We take good care of each other,” Arizona corrected. “Now, is there anything we need to do before we move this into the bedroom?”

“No, uh… they told me what needed to be done when I picked it up. I got it pretty much ready,” Callie nervously rambled. She suddenly realized they weren’t just going into the other room to make love like they had a thousand times before. Tonight would be different.

“Shh, it’s okay,” Arizona calmly told her and kissed her softly on the lips. She could tell Callie was nervous, for a brief moment wondered why she wasn’t as well. Maybe once they got closer to the moment she would be, knowing she would be filling her wife up with sperm. She refused to think of that fact though, and more so whose it was.

She held Callie’s hand as they made their way into their bedroom and dropped the towel just shy of their bed. “Just relax,” she told Callie as she nudged the taller woman onto the bed. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw what they would be using later on the night stand, but pushed it out of her mind for now.

Putting her legs on either side of Callie, she kissed her wife as she maneuvered them back further on the bed. Once Callie was lying back across the pillows, Arizona kissed her way down to Callie’s chest, making sure to give each of her wife’s gorgeous breasts a generous amount of attention.

Callie couldn’t stop her back from arching as Arizona made her way further down her body. She felt a tongue dip down into her belly button, licking all around before moving lower still. Her eyes snapped closed as fingers ghosted over her center, her arousal peaking further than she thought possible. Then she felt it, that mouth that knew her body better than she did.

With the first taste, Arizona groaned. She never tired of being in this position. Hearing the sounds Callie made, knowing they were all because of her was something she’d enjoy for the rest of her life. And the fact that she was the only one that would ever get to see her wife like this was just the icing on the cake.

She knew that their odds would increase if they injected the little swimmers while Callie was in the throes of an orgasm, but she wasn’t sure she could stop long enough to do it. She slowed her tongue down and suckled Callie’s clit, trying to keep her on the edge just a little longer. The more powerful the orgasm, the better chance they’d have. And she knew how to keep Callie’s body on the edge for a very long time.

Callie cried out when she felt Arizona’s mouth leave her body, wanting it back where it belonged. “Please, please,” she begged.

“Hold on sweetie,” Arizona cooed softly. She climbed up Callie’s body and gave her a kiss, letting her wife taste herself on her lips. “I just need to get the stuff,” she whispered, refusing to acknowledge out loud what it was.

The doctor in her felt amazed at what she held in her hand, knowing it could help create a life. But the wife in her was a little jealous that it could do what she could not. But most forefront was the lesbian in her that just plain found it icky.

“Hurry please,” Callie begged, not caring at this moment what else might happen. All she wanted was for Arizona to finish the job she started. She didn’t have to wait long though and Arizona’s mouth was back where she wanted it to be.

Arizona held her dangling for as long as she could and gave Callie exactly what she wanted when she knew the other woman couldn’t hold out any longer. Callie didn’t even notice as Arizona filled her up, to lost in the feeling her wife had given her.

Arizona crawled up Callie’s body and dropped the syringe on the night stand. She pulled Callie into her arms, helping her come back down to earth. She smiled down at her wife and kissed her forehead, hoping with everything in her they wouldn’t have to wait long for their wish to come true.


	14. Chapter 14

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for another long delay. My grandmother died expectantly shortly after I posted the last chapter so I've been dealing with that. I'm determined to finish this story though and maybe even sooner rather than later. It was never meant to be a long one and it's already longer than I planned. I guess we'll see what my muse still has in store.

**Chapter 14**

Leaning back against the headboard of their bed, Arizona tried to hold in the chuckle at the position her wife was currently laying in. She knew why Callie's legs were right next to her head, why the other woman was lying at such an awkward angle. She was doing what thousands of women had done before her and used the position to encourage the sperm towards its goal and create a life.

Still she couldn't help the small laugh that came out, as she watched Callie struggle to stay where she was for just a little longer.

"Laugh at me now," Callie groaned.

"I'm sorry," Arizona apologized. She slid down further in the bed and lined her head next to Callie's stomach and ran a hand over it lightly. "If you could see it from my perspective you'd laugh too. But it'll all be worth it," she told her. Inside she was hoping this would work and they wouldn't go through months of agony like some couples.

"I know. It will be worth it," Callie agreed.

Arizona sighed and scooted closer so her head was resting against her wife. "Do you think the girls will be okay with this?" she asked curiously.

"They might not be at first," Callie started. "But I think eventually after they get used to the idea, they'll love their little brother or sister."

"We need a little boy," Arizona smiled as she thought about the first time she held a week old JoJo in her arms. And now there was Nicky who they all enjoyed spending time with.

"I think so too, but I'll be happy with another girl."

Arizona nodded her head in agreement. "Of course we'd love another little girl. There's no question about that. Still a boy in the house would be fun."

"No doubt. And keep us on our toes too," Callie smiled. The last time they had Skyped with Tim and Megan, they could see JoJo in the background getting into anything he could get his hands on. Having another Robbins boy, Callie was sure, would produce the same results. Tim and Arizona were both little hellions as Barbara liked to tell it.

"Oh, by the way," Arizona started when she remembered the little tidbit she'd learned earlier. "I know we were thinking of taking a little trip to Utah, but I was actually talking to Tim earlier today and they are going to be up here in a few weeks. He's got some leave coming up so they decided to come visit."

"Ah, well that's cool," Callie admitted. It had been awhile since they'd been able to see Tim and his family. With their crazy schedules it was hard to take off too much time to get away.

"Yeah. So we can still go there if you want. After all our anniversary is also coming up and it would be nice to visit our hotel again," Arizona smirked, her mind filled with thoughts of the first time they made love. "Or we can come up with another idea for a family vacation. Ooh maybe Disneyland. The girls will love it. Well Lex will, not sure about Amelia though. She's trying to do that whole 'tough teenager' act."

Listening to Arizona's ramble got a smile and a laugh out of Callie. Having had enough of the awkward position, she moved away from Arizona so she could swing herself around. Reclined back against the headboard, she pulled the blonde back against her and held her close. "Mm, that could definitely be fun though," Callie agreed. "We'll have to think about it. And something we'd probably want to do either now, or several years down the road when the baby is old enough to enjoy it. But I also like the idea of visiting our hotel," she smiled and gave Arizona a quick kiss on the forehead.

"Me too. Guess we'll have to talk about it some more and figure out which would be best."

"Yeah, and not a decision we probably need to make tonight. Something we should probably talk about more and maybe ask the girls what they want to do. It's their vacation too. And there are always other anniversaries we could spend in Utah," Callie pointed out.

"Mmm, true," Arizona agreed. "Oh speaking of anniversaries…"

"You mind is just full tonight isn't it?" Callie interrupted. It wasn't the first time she'd had to keep up with Arizona's train of thought and she knew it wouldn't be the last.

"Oh hush," Arizona told her with a soft swat to the shoulder. "I've been thinking about what to do for mom and dad's this year. It's kind of a big one for them, 35 years," Arizona all but sighed. She'd been married to Callie for almost 12 years now and couldn't wait to see where they were at when they'd been together as long as her parents had.

"Yes, I know," Callie smiled and wondered what her wife was getting at.

"I was thinking this year, maybe we could send them on a cruise. Mom would love it and I'm sure Dad would eventually enjoy it. Tim would probably chip in so we wouldn't have to pay for the whole thing," Arizona added with a bit of a tease in her voice.

Their access to almost endless funds became somewhat of a running joke between them. Although it hadn't always been that way. In fact it had started one of the only major fights between them. While it wasn't a huge one, it was an important one.

_Laying Amelia down in her crib, Callie blew her one last kiss before quietly leaving the room. It had been a long day and it had taken even longer for Amelia to fall asleep than usual. She had become rather clingy with her mothers in the few days since they'd been back from their honeymoon. Neither woman could blame her, but it was taking its toll._

_Wanting nothing more than to cuddle with her wife, she walked across the hall to their bedroom and hoped Arizona was already in there ready for bed. Half of her wish came true when she found Arizona in their room. But her wife was at their desk busy typing something she couldn't see on her laptop._

_Callie quickly changed into boxers and a tank top with hope that Arizona would get the hint and get ready herself. When that failed to work, she walked up and wrapped her arms around her shoulders from behind and whispered in her ear. "It's late, come to bed, I want to snuggle."_

" _Give me just a little bit longer, I need to get this done," Arizona responded._

" _What are you doing?" Callie asked as she glanced at the screen. Arizona was filling out some form of application, but for what she wasn't sure._

" _It's my application for a student loan. I should have done it earlier but with the wedding I'm behind."_

_Callie made a noise of dismissal. "Forget about that and come to bed," she told her._

" _I can't just forget about it, Callie," Arizona ground out and tried to keep her focus on the screen. "We'll be starting college in just over a month, I need to get this done. I already got a grant for military kids, but it won't cover it all."_

" _You don't need all that. In fact give the grant back so someone who needs it more can have it," Callie told her. She tried to slip around Arizona and close the page, but her wife just slapped her hand away._

" _I need it," Arizona argued. "My parents don't have the money to pay for all my schooling and between college and med school it's going to get expensive."_

" _No, you don't," Callie threw back. Was Arizona really this clueless or is this one of her wife's stubborn snits? Callie wasn't sure, but she really didn't want to be arguing right now. All she wanted was to cuddle with her wife and get some much needed sleep._

" _How else am I going to pay for school?" Arizona asked in almost a yell. She barely spared Callie a glance as she continued answering the questions on the screen._

" _Your tuition is already taken care of," Callie shot back in the same tone. "First year is already paid in full, same as mine."_

_Arizona did spin around then and looked at Callie with a hard stare. "What are you talking about?"_

" _I sent them a check a couple weeks ago, remember?" Callie answered a little quieter, trying to calm their argument down._

_Arizona thought back to a few weeks ago when they were talking about school and figuring a few things out. "I remember you writing a check, yes. That was for mine too?"_

" _Of course it was," Callie told her as if it was obvious._

" _No, I can't let you pay for my school," Arizona said before turning back around to the laptop._

" _I'M not paying for it. WE are paying for it," Callie responded with emphasis on the important difference. "WE are married now, that means it is OUR money."_

_Arizona groans and turned back around from the computer to look at Callie. "I didn't marry you for your money. I planned to pay my own way through school."_

" _I know you didn't. You care about money about as much as I do," Callie smiled. She walked over to Arizona and pulled her out of the chair so they were one equal footing. "It's one of the many things I love about you. But even though neither of us cares about the money, it's still there to be used so we might as well use it," Callie points out._

" _I don't want you to feel like I'm taking advantage," Arizona admitted. They probably should have had this conversation a long time ago and without so much anger._

" _Oh, sweetie," Callie sighed and places a hand on Arizona's cheek. "I could never in a million years think that."_

_Arizona tilted her head down, finding interest in the floor. She was being stupid and she knew it. She picked a fight with Callie because she was stubborn. She knew Callie had access to pretty much unlimited funds, but until recently she didn't realize how it would affect her life as well. "I know, I'm sorry. I just didn't want to feel like I was using you. You've given me so much and I have nothing to give you in return."_

" _You've given me back just as much trust me. You gave me a family, a real family. And you gave me your name."_

" _Technically you took that," Arizona teased, her smile finally coming back out._

" _Also you can use me all you want, so long as it stays in this room," Callie whispered in Arizona ear and kissed her in the crook of her neck._

" _You have such a gutter mind sometimes I swear it," Arizona groaned. "That's not what I meant and you know it."_

" _I know, I know. But you're not using me. We're partners, that's how this works. Maybe someday we can do something good with our money. Would that make you feel better?"_

" _Very much so," Arizona answered with a nod of her head._

" _Good! Can we go to bed now?" Callie pouted. She was so ready for this whole thing to be over with. This was their first real fight and while they seemed to make it through, it still had her a little on edge._

" _Yes, we can go to bed now," Arizona told her. She gave Callie a gentle push towards their bed before turning around to shut down the laptop for the night. She made a mental note to call the grant committee tomorrow and have them give it to someone else. Callie was right, she really didn't need it, so it should go to someone who did._

_She changed quickly out of her clothes and settled down on her side of the bed, waiting for Callie to pull her closer. It was their routine, and something she'd never tire of. For a brief moment she held her breath, wondering if that fight would take this away from her. When she felt Callie's arms wrap around her, she breathed a sigh of relief and cuddled closer. They'd survived their first argument, and she was more than glad about that._

Years after that first argument there were moments were Arizona was hesitant to spend any major amounts of money. About the only time she barely gave it any thought was when they were trying to conceive Alexia. Then she had no qualms about spending whatever it took. But even that took on the first try so it didn't get to expensive.

She'd finally given up caring so much when they'd decided to purchase their home. As much as she loved her parents, living in the basement with their two growing daughters sharing a room really wasn't working for them anymore. So when the neighbors next door decided to move, Arizona was the first to suggest they buy it.

"And if Tim and Megan have something else in mind, I'm still more than happy to send your parents on a cruise," Callie smiled, bringing them both back to the conversation and not lost in memories. "Oh one condition," she said with a bit of mischief in her voice.

Arizona lifts her head up a little higher to study Callie's face. "What's that?"

"For our 20th anniversary we dump the kids off on your parents and go on our own cruise," Callie schemed.

"That's like eight years away, Amelia and possibly Alexia will both be in college."

"Yes but hopefully we'll have a seven year old by then, and maybe another one too," Callie pointed out.

"More kids?" Arizona questioned. They haven't even had their third and already her wife was planning another. She smiled and laid her head back on Callie's shoulder. She'd have a dozen kids if it made Callie happy.

"Well at least one more," Callie answered. "After all it's only fair if you're pregnant as many times as I am."

"Oh, so I'm having the next one too? Got it," the blonde agreed. She could argue, but why bother, she was in agreement. She wouldn't mind being pregnant a second time. Giving birth to Alexia had been one of the most amazing things in her life. "But we could go on one of those Disney cruises and take the kids," Arizona pointed out.

"Hmm, yeah, we could do that too," Callie told her as she thought it over. "But I still want one that's just me and you."

"I do love the sound of that," Arizona admitted. As much as they loved their children, nights like tonight where it was just the two of them didn't come around very often. She never took any of them for granted.

"Hmm, good," Callie yawned.

Hearing the second "hmm" from her wife, Arizona knew it wasn't long before Callie was out cold. It was amazing she'd lasted this long, especially considering what Arizona had done to her earlier. She sat up and helped Callie slide lower in the bed so that she was laying down all the way before she took her place back on Callie's side. "Goodnight. I love you," she whispered.

"Mm, love you too," Callie managed to get out before sliding into slumber.

Arizona laid there awake for a little while longer with a hand on Callie's stomach as she rubbed it gently. She tried not to let herself believe that they were in for months of possible disappointment and negative tests. That maybe they'd be lucky a third time and get a baby on the first try. That night as she drifted off to sleep, a smile covered her face as she dreamed of a little boy running in their backyard. Maybe, just maybe, they wouldn't have to wait long for him.


	15. Chapter 15

**Chapter 15**

Rolling her head around, Arizona groaned in relief. She'd already spent way too many hours in the OR with back to back surgeries and was more than ready to go home for the evening. However, there was one more patient she needed to take care of before that could happen.

Heading towards the waiting room, she smiled to see her favorite patient sitting in a wheelchair beside his mother, a look of excitement on his young face. "Hey, Nicky," she greeted. "You ready to get that cast off?"

Nicky nodded his head exuberantly. Aria stood up from where she was sitting and moved behind her son to push his chair. Arizona fell into step beside them as she led the way through the halls. Opening the door to the room they wanted, she motioned for them to go in ahead of her.

"Where's Auntie Callie?" Nicky asked when he realized his new favorite doctor wasn't in the room waiting for them.

"She got pulled into surgery so you're stuck with me. Is that okay?" Arizona asked, her dimples popped as she smiled at him. Over the weeks they had all spent getting to know each other, Nicky had grown to love both of them, but he showed a definite preference for her wife.

Normally neither Arizona nor Callie would bother to do something so mundane as cut a cast off, but Nicky wasn't just any patient. They had both agreed that they wanted to be the ones to see Nicky's care all the way to the end.

"Actually, I wanted to talk to your mom about something so this works out perfectly," Arizona told the two of them with a bit of mischief behind her voice. She had to hold back a snicker when Aria raised an eyebrow, much the same way Callie would when she was silently asking a question. She mouthed "later" to the other woman and went about freeing Nicky from his plaster prison.

"Alright, the cast is off now, but that doesn't mean you can go running full speed ahead," Arizona softly cautioned. "You're going to need to take it slow for the next few days, buddy," she looked straight into his eyes so he could see how serious she was. "You'll be racing again soon, but your leg isn't used to walking anymore so it's probably going to be a little sore."

"Okay, Auntie Arizona. I go slow, I promise," the kindergartener told her.

"Good boy," Arizona smiled and ran a hand through his hair, messing it up a bit. He looked so much like her girls when they were that age, she couldn't help but have a soft spot for him. "Let's get you to your feet and try out that leg."

Aria and Arizona stood on either side of Nicky as he slid down off the exam table. He wobbled a bit at first but quickly caught his balance. He walked slow and steady to start, but seemed to adapt quickly. Arizona sighed in relief worried he'd need some rehab, but that didn't seem to be the case. Her wife was amazing with a scalpel after all.

"So what did you want to talk about?" Aria asked.

Arizona gave a glance around the room, and out into the hallway where several interns were gathered. "Let's go up to my office and talk there."

"You have an office now?" Aria asked surprised. She of course knew Arizona had passed her boards and was now a fellow, but that was the last she had heard.

Arizona grinned brightly as she once again led the other two through the hospital towards the offices on the Peds floor. "One of our attendings just left to take a job out of state. They decided not to replace him and just leave the position open for when I finish my fellowship. The chief told me I might as well use the office, since the job was going to be mine anyway."

"That's awesome," Aria told her, happy for Arizona.

"Yeah, I'm pretty excited about it myself. I wasn't even sure I'd get to stay here as a fellow but to be an attending here one day as well is pretty amazing." She hadn't told anyone how worried she had been as she filled out her applications for fellowships. Unlike most of the surgeons in her class, she didn't just have herself to worry about. She had a family and Callie's career as well to worry about. She thanked her lucky stars it never became an issue.

She opened the door to her office and got Nicky settled at her desk playing a game on her computer before she turned to Aria. She motioned to the couch sitting a few feet away and the two women sat down side by side facing each other.

"So, uh, here's the thing," Arizona started, not sure how Aria is going to feel about what she wants to ask. She'd thought about this a million times over, but she knew how much it would mean to Callie, so she pushed through regardless because the other woman wouldn't even think to ask. "Callie's birthday is coming up and we were planning on doing a barbeque."

"That sounds nice," Aria responded. She had an idea of where Arizona was going with this, but she waited for her to continue.

"My brother and his family will be in town so they will be there, and of course my parents," Arizona continued on.

"And you're asking us to come," Aria spoke, getting straight to the point.

Arizona nodded. "I know how much it would mean to Callie if you did. But here's the thing, Lucia will probably be there, which is why Callie hasn't even bothered to ask you."

Aria tilted her head back and sighed. She had enjoyed the time she spent the last few months getting to know her sister and her family. She could even say they felt like sisters at this point. But she wasn't sure if she was ready to meet the mother who had given her up in the first place. "I'm going to have to think about this."

"Understandable. I just thought you should be given the choice. And if you still aren't ready, then maybe we can all just go out and do something together another night." Arizona suggested. She figured Aria would feel guilty if she decided to skip Callie's party, so she wanted to at least offer her another option. "But if you do decide to come, Callie and I will both be there with you when you meet Lucia."

"Do you think she would want to meet me?" Aria asked with vulnerability. It was one of the worries that had plagued her. Even though Callie had told her the circumstances surrounding her birth, she was still scared that her mother really hadn't wanted her. Maybe Arizona could provide her with a less biased opinion.

"Honestly?" Arizona asked, getting a nod to continue. "I think she would. She never wanted to give you up in the first place."

"But she's never tried to find me," Aria pointed out.

"I think she's just as afraid of meeting you as you are. Plus, even though she didn't have a say in it, she knew you went to a good family. Her parents wouldn't have left you with just anyone, so I think she just thought you were better off without her." While Lucia had never come out and said that directly, Arizona had been able to read through the lines.

"Alright, well I'll let you know," Aria told her. She pulled Nicky away from Arizona's computer and left with a promise to call soon.

**~CA~**

Callie took a look around her backyard and smiled. All the people she loved was here to celebrate with her. Well mostly everyone, but she understood why those two were missing. She wasn't a huge fan of birthdays, but her girls loved birthdays, so she'd never deny them the chance to celebrate hers.

As much as today was supposed to be fun, she couldn't help the hint of sadness that came over her. Another month had come and gone and still no signs of a baby growing inside her. It had only been two months of trying, but each negative test seemed to mock her. The doctor in her knew that it might take them several tries, but the woman in her wanted so badly to be pregnant again. She tried to shake it off though and let today be one of joy.

She walked over to where the barbeque was set up and gave a gentle pat to Tim's shoulder as she looked past him to the cooking meat. "How's it coming Timmy?"

"Shouldn't be too much longer now," he told her. He had given up trying to get both Callie and Arizona to stop calling him Timmy. The older they all got the funnier the two women seemed to think it was.

Across the yard her daughters were chasing little JoJo around the yard. The boy was over the moon to be getting so much attention. Amelia and Alexia both loved to give it to him. For the first time Callie felt like there was something missing from the picture, well several things actual as she took a quick saddened look towards her stomach.

The rest of the adults were sitting under the canopy, sipping on their drink of choice as they all chatted easily. Although getting the entire family getting together didn't happen very often, it didn't stop them from enjoying the time they had.

Callie took a seat beside Arizona and took her wife's hand into her own, pulling it into her lap. Arizona turned to look at her and gave her a smiled. The blonde leaned over and placed a quick peck on Callie's lips. She lifted their joined hands to sit on Callie's stomach and whispered a quiet "soon" into her wife's ear.

She'd caught the look on Callie's face just minutes before and knew exactly where her wife's thoughts were at. She was disappointed to, but she knew it would happen for them. They just had to relax and let it happen. "I love you, birthday girl."

"I love you, too."

Tim called for the children to come to the table as he carried a plate full of burgers and hot dogs. Carlos and Daniel had both tried to vote for steaks, but it fell on deaf ears. Amelia and Lex had wanted a simple picnic and Callie was more than happy to go along with it.

No one seemed to notice the subtle glances Arizona kept making towards her phone, but Callie couldn't help but pay attention each and every time Arizona hit the power button to see if she had any notifications. When her phone did go off, she would snatch it up before Callie could see who it was.

"Come with me," Arizona whispered in Callie's ear at the last message, pulling her wife into the back through the house.

When her wife opened their front door, Callie was surprised to see who was on the other side. "Aria, Nicky, you're here," she smiled and hugged them both.

"We're here," Aria repeated. "I'm not sure I'm ready for this, but I think I need to do it. But it's your birthday so maybe I should just go, I don't want to spoil it."

Callie didn't need an explanation, she knew exactly what Aria was trying to tell her. "Its fine," she reassured. "I'd rather have a little bit of drama if it meant you were here. Today wasn't feeling right, but now it does."

Aria took a deep breath and made herself believe the words that Callie was saying. "What about the rest of your family?"

"They'll be fine. But I'll bring Mom in here first if that will help." Aria nodded gratefully, so Callie took that as her cue to go and grab her mother. As she left the room, she saw Arizona wrap her arm around Aria in support. She knew they'd make it through this. She just hoped her mother wouldn't react badly.

With a quick stride, Callie stepped in front of her mother and got her attention. She bent down so she wouldn't easily be overheard. "Did you ever tell Dad what you told me the day we brought Lex home?"

Lucia was taken aback by the question. They hadn't mentioned that conversation to each other since that day. She definitely wasn't expecting it today of all days. "Yes, I did," she answered anyway.

"Alright, good. Then you both need to come with me," Callie commanded, looking them both in the eye. "We'll be right back in a few, keep eating," she told Robbins clan.

Confused, Lucia stood up and took her husband's hand as they followed their daughter into the kitchen. Callie held up a hand to stop them there. She figured it would be easier if she gave them a little heads up. They'd know instantly who Aria was once they saw her.

"First, I want you to know that this happened completely by accident. Neither one of us sought this out, it was just a random occurance. We've both been trying to figure out what to do about it, and I've been worried you'd hate me for keeping it from you, but it wasn't my choice," Callie rambled.

"Mija, you're not making any sense," Carlos told, trying to calm his daughter down.

Callie took a deep breath, trying to gather her thoughts. "A while back ago a little boy came in with a broken femur. He was under the care of his nanny because his mother was out of town. Arizona and I operated on him, but we didn't get to meet his mother until later. When we did meet her, it was obvious who she was."

Lucia was starting to understand where this conversation was going, piece it together with Callie's earlier question. Still she didn't dare hope that it was true.

"Since then we've been getting to know each other, and of course continued to care for Nicky after his surgery. He's the coolest little boy, and so smart," Callie smiled, briefly going off topic.

"Are you saying that…?" Lucia left it open, knowing Callie would pick up what she was asking.

"Yes, through complete accident, I found my sister. Your daughter," Callie answered. "We look so much a like it was pretty obvious. But we did a DNA test anyway and it came out positive."

"Oh my gosh," Lucia exclaimed, grabbing onto Carlos as she took a seat on the bar stool. "Why are you telling me this now?"

"Because she's in the other room wanting to meet you."


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Grey's day! Let's hope tonight's episode is all we want it to be. And I hope you enjoy the meeting of Lucia and Aria, I struggled a bit so hope it comes out okay.

**Chapter 16**

" _Because she's in the other room wanting to meet you."_

Lucia's mind swirled with thoughts as she tried to process the news Callie had just given her. Her daughter was in the other room. The baby she hadn't seen for 36 years was there wanting to meet her. It was the very thing she had dreamed about for so long, but never believed it would actually happen.

She had decided long ago never to seek out the child she had given away. She didn't want to disrupt her life that way. But in the back of her mind she had always hoped that someday her child would find her.

"I um… I don't…," she faltered, not really sure what she was trying to say.

Carlos wrapped an arm around his wife in support and planted a kiss in her hair, just above her ear. He knew how Lucia was feeling right now, how much it meant to her to be presented this opportunity. He would forever be grateful she had found the push she needed to come to terms with her past. Once she had, they were finally able to repair their relationship, and he felt they were now stronger than ever. "This is what you've been wishing for," he whispered.

"What do I even say to her?" Lucia asked.

"Start with 'hello' and go from there," Callie suggested. "She's really an awesome person." Callie's use of the world awesome got a smile from both Carlos and Lucia, knowing it was Arizona's influence. "She's nervous too," she added.

Once Lucia decided she was ready, Callie took her left hand while Carlos took her right. Both of them walked beside her towards the living room, showing her their complete support.

Silence had descended in the living room once Callie left to go get her parents, but not for lack of trying on Arizona's part. She tried to distract Aria with conversation and take her mind off what was about to happen, but her attempts had failed. So knowing she wasn't getting anywhere with Aria, she turned her attention to Nicky, distracting him from his mother's nerves. She thought about offering to take Nicky outside to play with his cousins, but didn't want to leave Aria alone right then.

Both women's head shot up when they heard footsteps headed towards the room. As soon as the three Torres' were through the door, Aria's eyes locked on Lucia, just as Lucia's did the same. The two stayed in a silent staring contest for several moments, neither knowing what to say.

"Hello," Lucia finally said, breaking the silence and taking Callie's advice.

"Hi," Aria responded back.

"I'm sorry, I don't really know what to say. I don't even know your name," Lucia admitted sadly.

Aria let out a nervous chuckle. "Guess that's as good a place to start as any," she laughed. "My name is Aria, and that handsome guy over there with Arizona is my son, Nicholas, although he goes by Nicky," she introduced them.

It wasn't until that moment, Lucia even noticed the child in the room. Her eyes had been so focused on Aria. Although she vaguely remembered Callie's explanation of how the two had met, so in the back of her mind she knew Aria had a child of her own.

Walk over to the couch, Lucia squatted down so she was eye level with the little boy. "Hi Nicky, I'm Lucia," she smiled at him and then threw a glance in Aria's directions, letting her know that introduction was towards both of them. She got a soft 'hi' from the boy in return.

"I think I'll take Nicky out back so you guys can talk," Arizona announced. She stood up and held her hand out for Nicky who took it without any hesitation.

Before they could make it out the door, Callie grabbed Arizona's free hand and turned her so they were face-to-face. "Are you coming back?" she asked softly. She really wanted Arizona standing beside her during this little family reunion.

"I, um, don't know," Arizona answered as she looked at Lucia briefly before turning back to Callie.

"Do come back, Arizona. You are family," Lucia said sincerely. It spoke volumes to how far they had come in recent years. "It was nice to meet you, Nicky," she called as the two made their way out of the room.

With Nicky and Arizona's departure, the room was once again thrown into silence. What did anyone say in this type of situation? It seemed no one had a response to that silent question.

"Why did you never try to find me?" Aria finally burst out. She knew why Lucia had given her up. She understood what Callie had told her of the events surrounding her birth. What she didn't have the answer to was why Lucia had never tried before to contact her.

Lucia sighed and took a seat across from Aria. "I wanted to, believe me. But I didn't want to disrupt your life. I didn't know if you even knew if you were adopted, and I never wanted to bring you any pain. I thought it better that I just stayed out of your life so long as I believed you were happy without me," Lucia answered honestly. "I have been praying every day that you would seek me out instead."

"I didn't plan to," Aria admitted. "When I first found out I was adopted it was just after my parents had both died. It was all a little too much for me to handle at the time. Then I met Callie by accident and everything just kind of spiraled after that."

"Yeah, she filled me in a little bit in the other room." Lucia paused, trying to think of anything to say. Anything at all, but nothing was coming to mind.

"It was pretty weird walking into the waiting room to update our patient's parent, only to find a woman who I briefly almost mistook for my wife," Arizona laughed as she entered the room again and took a seat beside Callie. She was hoping to get the conversation flowing a little bit more.

Aria laughed as well at Arizona's memory. "I kept wondering why she was staring at me so funny. I figured it out later when I finally met Callie after the surgery was over."

Lucia could hear the familiarity between the women. The three of them had obviously spent a lot of time together. That was understandable if Nicky had to spend an extended amount of time in the hospital. She knew how invested both doctors got with their patients even under normal circumstances.

"There are some obvious differences between us, but anyone not looking at us very hard could probably easily mistake us for the other," Callie chimed in. For the first few months after meeting Aria, the thought that someone looked so much like her was a little disturbing. Now she had just kind of come to accept it.

"Think of all the shenanigans you too could have gotten into as kids," Arizona teased.

"Shenanigans? Really?" Callie smirked. Some of the words her wife chose to use amazed her. All she got in return was Arizona sticking her tongue out at her, like the child Callie sometimes still believed she was.

"You've had to deal with these two for how long?" Aria asked pointing at the wives who were now focused on each other.

"Far too long," Carlos responded, speaking for the first time to the room. "You should have seen them as teenagers. They couldn't keep their hands off each other," he laughed.

"Dad!" Callie admonished. "We weren't that bad, really," she told Aria. "We've always just felt the need to be connected physically, not necessarily intimate."

"I've noticed that." Even now Aria glanced down and the two had a hand on the other's leg. They were never separate if they were in the same room, always close together. Still it was fun to tease them.

Lucia looked down into her lap, regret once again eating at her. The girls were in college before she had finally been able to see them for the loving couple that they were. She didn't let herself be there to watch Callie fall in love for the first, and only time.

Even now she still held back a little of herself. But looking up at Aria as the conversation continued to flow around her, she realized that maybe she could finally let everything go. She had her daughter back, at least in a way. She knew she might never get a chance to be her mom, but at least she could have her in her life. It was the once piece she had been missing all these years.

"I hope this won't be the only time I see you," Lucia interrupts their conversation as she spoke to Aria.

The young woman turned then to her birth mother, seeing all the feelings she held back in her eyes. "It won't be," Aria assured her. "I don't really need parents, mine were pretty great even if they are gone. But I was an only child growing up and I really like having sisters now," she smiled at Callie and Arizona. "So, I'm sure I'll be around more often."

"Good, that's good," Lucia nodded her head. "Maybe we could spend some time together, have lunch one day?"

"That sounds like a good idea," Aria agreed. She was no longer in the mood to have any seriously conversations. They'd gotten the initial meeting out of the way, so that would be enough for now. They were here for Callie's birthday after all. "We should probably be heading out back though. Don't you have more guests? Or did you forget about them?" she smirked.

"Oh yeah." Callie could admit that for a few moments she did forget that the Robbins family was there as well. She got up and grabbed Aria's hand, pulling her up with. "Come on, I want the rest of the family to meet you."

Once outside, Callie drug Aria over to where Barbara and Daniel were seated as they watch Tim and Megan chase all four kids around the yard. "Mom, Dad, this is my sister Aria," Callie introduced them. "Aria, this is Barbara and Daniel, my other parents," she smiled. She never introduced them as her in-laws, because that wasn't how she felt about them. To Callie, Barbara and Daniel would always just be her other set of parents. Even if, heaven forbid, she and Arizona split up, they would still be, and she knew they felt the same about her. She was positive that would never happen, however.

"It's nice to meet you, for real this time," Barbara smiled as she remembered the time this young woman showed up at the wrong house looking for her girls.

"Nice to meet you, too."

"Tim, Megan, get your butts over here," Arizona yelled as she came through the door and headed towards the other four adults.

"Bossy, bossy," Tim yelled back, but did as he was told. He figured out quickly who the stranger was standing beside Callie. Apparently his sisters had been keeping some secrets.

"As you can tell this is my brother, Tim, and his wife, Megan," Arizona told Aria. "And the cute little boy running around in just his diaper is their son, JoJo. What happened to his clothes?" She didn't think they'd been gone that long.

"He grabbed his father's soda and spilled it all down himself," Megan answered, giving Tim a playful glare. "It's plenty warm out here though, so long as he has plenty of sunscreen, I'm not worried."

"No, but it looks like my kid is getting ideas," Aria smiled as she watched Nicky rip off his own shirt. Before she knew what hit her, the article of clothing came flying at her face with a request to hold onto it for him. After all it was "his favorite shirt."

"Do you care if he gets wet?" Arizona asked quietly so the children couldn't hear. "We could open the pool for them. We don't get to use it much anyway."

"No, I always carry a spare change of clothes in the car."

"Me too," Megan joined in. "Boys seem to find trouble no matter where they go."

"It's so true," Aria agreed.

Callie and Arizona listened on to their sisters' conversation. Maybe someday they'd be able to join in about the joys of having a little boy. Although watching their girls play with their younger cousins, they were pretty happy with girls.

"Girls, why don't you go get your suits on. Mama thinks we should open the pool," Callie yelled across the yard.

"Yes!" came from both girls as they ran past their mothers and into the house.

Megan turned to her husband with a sweet smile. "Will you go next door and get JoJo's suit and a swim diaper, please."

Tim groaned, but gave his wife a quick peck on the lips before heading towards the gate that separated the two Robbins' yards.

"We picked up some of those water wings the other day," Arizona told Megan. "And one of those toddler rafts too." Actually, Arizona had insisted on a special shopping trip when they heard their nephew was coming to town. She wanted to make sure he had plenty to do while he was there. "Does Nicky know how to swim? We grabbed a couple sets of the water wings since they were so cheap, I worried they might pop."

"He does alright, but it might not be a bad idea," Aria answered.

"Well, since it's your idea, you get to go uncover the pool," Callie smiled and pecked Arizona on pouty lips. She knew how much Arizona hated that task. "Aria and I will go get the toys and stuff out of the garage."

"I'll help you," Megan offered when she saw the look on Arizona's face.

That got a smile from Arizona and she wrapped an arm around Megan's shoulder in a half hug. "Best sister ever!" she called loud enough for Callie and Aria to hear.

"Ignore her," Callie told Aria. "She's just trying to get someone to do all the work for her. She loves that we have a pool, but she hates taking care of it."

"I could see that."

"Did you want to get in? We're about the same size, I'm sure we could find a suit that fits," Callie offered as they dug through the garage in search of the shopping bags they'd left in there. "I guess Arizona didn't think to mention it to you when she invited you, huh?"

"No, it's fine though. Maybe some other time, I'm not really in the swimming mood today," Aria admitted.

Callie nodded her head in understanding. Today was likely taking its toll on her sister emotionally. She was so grateful she'd decided to brave it though. Now a weight had been lifted off Callie's shoulders as well. She no longer hand to worry about keep the secret from her mother. "Still, I'm glad you came," she told her.

"I am too. I wasn't sure what to expect, but it wasn't too bad. And she seems nice," Aria added. She didn't need to elaborate on who 'she' was.

Callie didn't comment. Lucia Torres was a nice woman, and she was even loving towards Callie these days, but sometimes her mind had a hard time forgetting what it was like in her high school days. "I think it'll help her, now that she's met you. I know she's been torn up about it."

The stayed in the garage, catching up as they used the electric pump in Callie's car to fill the raft and other toys up with air. They never seemed to run out of things to talk about, and Callie was so happy to have this woman in her life.

"We should probably get back out there. I know Nicky is probably chomping at the bit to get in the pool," Aria announced after the last toy was ready to go.

"Yeah, they are probably trying to hold JoJo back too. That kid loves the water."

The rest of the afternoon was spent with the four kids playing in the water while the adults sat around under the umbrella chatting. Tim, Megan, Callie, and Arizona all took turns in the pool with JoJo and helped Nicky when he needed it. It was one of the best afternoons Callie could remember having in a long time. She couldn't wait to see what else life had in store for her.


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

"Oh my gosh. I can't believe keeping that secret is finally over," Callie sighed as she sank down into the couch beside her wife. "Mom seemed to take it alright, didn't she?" she asked with a hint of insecurity in her voice. Everyone had left the party before Callie had gotten a chance to speak with her mom about the whole thing.

Arizona smiled and tugged on Callie's leg, prompting her wife to recline back with her legs in Arizona's lap. The blonde slipped the other woman's shoes off and began to massage her feet. She was the birthday girl, after all. "I think it might take her awhile to adjust to the situation, like it did for you. But she'll be fine," Arizona answered honestly. From her observation, Lucia had seemed to relax toward the end of the evening. A good sign that everything would be okay.

"I couldn't tell if she was upset with me for not saying something sooner," Callie vocalized her biggest fear. They'd come so far over the years and finally had a decent relationship. She didn't want to end up back in that place she'd been in as a teenager.

Arizona nodded. "I'm not going to lie, she might get upset with you for that. But I'm also positive she'd get over it quickly. She's worked really hard to get to where she is now with you. I don't think she'd let something like this come between you two again. Why don't you call her? See how she's doing?" she suggested.

Callie groaned, knowing her wife was right. "Maybe you're right," she admitted. She turned her head to shout over the back of the couch, "Alexia!" Arizona raised her eyebrow in question. "What? My phone is in the kitchen."

Blue eyes studied Callie intently. "You can't go get it yourself?"

"I'm comfy," Callie pouted. "Besides, it's my birthday. Isn't that why we had children?" Callie smirked. She loved antagonizing their children with odd little chores or requests.

Arizona pinched one of Callie's toes gently, causing her to flinch. "No, we had children because you got knocked up," she stated with a serious face.

Callie laughed, taking no offence because she knew Arizona was trying to goad her. "Well, you got knocked up with Alexia," she hit back.

"Oh, hush,"

"Lex!" Callie yelled again when their youngest still hadn't made an appearance.

"Yes, ma'am?" Lex asked as she entered the living room to find her moms relaxing together on the couch.

"Can you go get my phone please? It's on the bar in the kitchen," Callie pleaded with her daughter.

Alexia rolled her eyes, but turned toward the kitchen anyway. "Interrupting my reading to get a stupid phone," she muttered under her breath, not realizing the two women had heard her.

Callie and Arizona both had to stifle a laugh at her retreating back. Neither of them could figure out where Lex's love of reading came from. Of course they both did their fair share of reading when it came to medical journals, but rarely found the time to do so for their own enjoyment. Alexia was definitely their quiet child, unlike her sister.

The youngest Robbins returned to find her parents still in the same position and dropped the phone onto her mom's stomach. Before she could walk away, her mama grabbed her around the waist and pulled her down on top of them. She landed in the space beside her mama with her legs on top of her mom's.

"I need some Lex cuddles," Arizona stated as she pulled her daughter into her side, hugging her close. Knowing she was stuck for the time being, Alexia curled into her mama and relaxed. As an afterthought, Arizona shot Callie a look to make sure it was alright that their daughter was in the room.

Callie didn't both to answer the unspoken question, instead she unlocked her phone and found her mother's number. Their daughters pretty much knew everything anyway, there was no point in hiding the call from Alexia.

"Callie, to what do I own this pleasure?" Lucia asked after they had exchanged greetings. "I just saw you a few hours ago."

"I just wanted to see how you were doing with everything," Callie answered. "I know what happened today was a lot to take in." She heard her mother sigh on the other end of the phone.

"It was definitely a surprise," Lucia agreed. She still wasn't entirely sure how she felt about the whole thing, but she was slowly coming to terms with it. Even if she never saw Aria again, which she hoped wasn't the case, at least now she had a little bit more closure. "It was a good surprise though. If nothing else happens, I'm glad I got to finally meet her."

"I, uh," Callie paused, unsure of what exactly it was she was trying to say.

"What is it?" Lucia inquired. She knew there was more to this phone call then Callie just wanting to check in. She had a feeling she knew what it was, but she wasn't going to push.

"I wanted to know if you were mad at me for not telling you when I first found out," she finally admitted. Once the words started coming out, it was easy to finish.

"Of course, I'm not mad," the older woman easily answered.

"Are you sure?" Callie asked with a hint of fear.

Lucia sighed again. She hated that nothing could ever be easy between her and Callie. She had nobody to blame but herself, but it still sucked. "Did you keep this information from me to hurt me?"

"What? No, of course not," Callie quickly denied.

"Did you do it to get back at me?"

"Again, no."

"Then no, I'm not mad at you. Does it upset me a little bit to know you knew her before I did, yes," Lucia answered honestly. "But I could never be mad at you for this."

"I don't want us to go back to where we were before," Callie admitted softly.

"I don't want that either." Lucia paused. She'd screwed up so badly. "You didn't keep this to yourself because you wanted to, you did it because Aria wanted you to." She didn't need to ask, she already knew it was the truth.

"She wasn't sure she was ready, before today that is," Callie agreed.

"You know, I've been going to this support group for birth parents of adoptees. And one of the things we've talked a lot about is how you can't force the child you gave up into a relationship. That's what happened here. So let yourself off the hook for this one," Lucia told her daughter. She could hear in Callie's voice how much she was beating herself up for this one, but none of it was her fault.

Callie smiled a genuine smile. She believed her mother now when she told her she wasn't angry. She wouldn't put that much effort into talking Callie out of her own guilt if she was. "I didn't want to keep it from you."

"I know you didn't," Lucia responded.

"So we're okay?"

"Yes, we're okay."

"Good. That's good," Callie muttered. "I just wanted to be sure."

"Now quit worrying and enjoy your birthday," Lucia ordered.

Callie looked over at Alexia and Arizona as they sat cuddled together watching her. "I plan too," she smiled. With a few last words, she hung up the phone and threw it on the coffee table in front of the couch. "My turn for snuggles," she announced.

Alexia smiled and pulled out of Arizona's arms and moved so she was between Callie and the back of the couch. She laid and arm on her mom's stomach and her head on Callie's chest. She always was more of a mommy's girl.

"Traitor," Arizona muttered, seeing two of her three favorite girls looking very content. "Amelia!" she yelled. If she couldn't have one daughter, maybe she could at least have the other.

"You know she insists she's 'too old' to cuddle with her parents," Callie pointed out.

"I don't care, she's going to do it and she's going to like it," Arizona stated stubbornly.

"What Mama?" Amelia asked.

"Your sister abandoned me. I need someone to cuddle with." Arizona put on her best pout.

Amelia threw her hands up in the air and started backing away. "Uh, no way. I got other things to do."

"What can you possibly have to do that is more important than spending time with your family on your mother's birthday?" Callie jumped in.

Amelia rolled her eyes. "Really, trying the guilt trip thing."

"Darn right I am!" Callie smiled. "Now, quit being such a teenager and get over here and watch a movie with us."

"Alright fine," Amelia growled, throwing herself down on the couch next to Arizona. She wouldn't admit it, but she was secretly happy when her mama pulled her close. "But I get to choose what we watch," she announced as she grabbed the remote and turned on Netflix.

Looking at the other three people on the couch, Callie smiled. This was exactly how she wanted to spend her birthday.

**~CA~**

" _Calliope, get down here in the next five minutes if you want breakfast," a voice yelled down the hallway. Startled, the almost seven year old fell out of bed and landed on the carpeted floor. At least this apartment had carpet. The last place they'd lived didn't._

_Begrudgingly the little girl wandered into the kitchen and plopped herself on the bar stool, putting her elbow on the counter she laid her head down, trying not to fall back asleep. "Eat your cereal," Lucia snapped, jolting Callie to do as she was told. "What time did you go to bed last night?" she asked with a bit of a bite._

" _I don't know," Callie answered between bites of Honey Nut Cheerios. "Can I have some honey on here?"_

" _Honey isn't cheap," her mother ground out. "You can't use the whole bottle on a bowl of cereal that already has some in it."_

" _It doesn't taste the same," Callie pouted._

" _Fine, do whatever you want. But when I go after your father for more child support, you explain to him why," Lucia told her daughter and handed her the teddy bear shaped bottle._

" _Least daddy lets me do it," Callie whispered under her breath. She wished she could go live with her dad, but the courts didn't ask her what she wanted when her parents divorced two years ago. She hated it here._

" _What time did you and your sister go to bed last night?" Lucia questioned her eldest daughter as soon as she joined them for breakfast._

" _Same time as we always do," Aria answered._

" _Don't sass me girl," Lucia reprimanded. "If that's true then why is your sister falling asleep in her bowl? I count on you to take care of her when I'm at work," she lectured the teenager._

" _It's not my fault we left our nice house with daddy!" Aria yelled. Aria knew that was the real problem. Lucia could never accept that Carlos loved both girls, one his own and one not, more than he ever loved their mother. He spoiled them both rotten._

" _Don't talk about things you know nothing about!" Lucia yelled back and stormed off. "Make sure you both get to school. I've got to get to work," she yelled over her shoulder. Both girls let out a sigh of relief when they heard the front door open and close._

" _Why does she have to be so mean?" Callie asked her sister._

" _I don't know," Aria answered. "Just eat your cereal and then I'll help you pick out something to wear."_

_Callie did as she was told and ate her breakfast, trying to stay awake as she did so. Aria didn't lie to their mother when she said they went to bed on time, but she was just so tired. She made it through breakfast, but her cereal was beyond soggy by the time she finished. When she went back into her room to change into clothes for the day she fell onto her bed._

" _Callie, you need to get ready for school. We're going to be late," Aria told her when she found her little sister asleep on her bed._

" _I'm so tired," Callie moaned._

_Aria put a hand on Callie's arm intent on shaking her awake when she realized something wasn't right. Callie was extremely hot. Getting the thermometer out of the bathroom she took the little girl's temperature. She didn't know how hot was too hot, but the number on the screen couldn't be a good thing._

_She called their mother's cell phone but as usual got no response. Pissed with her mother, she did the one thing she was told never to do and called Carlos' phone._

" _Aria, what's up sweetie?" Carlos greeted._

" _Callie's sick. She's got a fever of 103.5. I tried to call mom, but didn't get an answer." Aria quickly explained._

_Carlos swore under his breath at his ex. "That's too high," he told the girl he thought of as a daughter. "Is she conscious?"_

" _She fell asleep and she's not really waking up."_

" _Call 911, and then call me back so I know what hospital they are taking her too," Carlos ordered. It was going to take longer than he was comfortable with to get across town. His daughter needed medical attention now. Maybe now he'd have the leverage he'd need to bring both girls home._

_He ran into the emergency room, screaming at the nurse to tell him where his daughter was at. A nurse pointed him in the right direction and he entered the room to find his baby hooked up to all kinds of IVs. Aria was sitting beside her bed quietly, looking more scared than Carlos had ever seen her._

" _Aria," he spoke quietly so not to wake Callie. The teenage flew into his arms._

" _They won't tell me what's wrong with her," Aria cried._

" _It's okay, mija. I'm here now," he soothed, kissing the top of her head._

_It was several hours later before Lucia finally made her way to the hospital. Almost as soon as Carlos saw her the two started in on a screaming match that had become the normal mode of conversation for the both of them._

" _Stop yelling," Aria cried, though no one could hear here. "Just stop."_

"Stop fighting," Callie screamed as she jolted up in bed.

"What's going on?" Arizona asked, waking from sleep herself.

"I think it was just a dream," Callie answered. She took a look around the room, seeing everything just as it had been before she went to bed.

"A nightmare?"

"No. Yes. I don't know." And Callie really didn't know how to describe it.

"Wanna to talk about it?" Arizona whispered and wrapped an arm around Callie's back. She gave her lover a kiss on the cheek.

"It was weird. Mom never gave Aria up. She still married my dad and had me though. But then all they did is fight so they split up. My mom was so nasty to both of us though. Aria was practically raising me," Callie filled her in. "Do you think that's really what would have happened?"

"I don't know. Maybe. Maybe not. There's no real way of knowing that," Arizona told her.

"I know. It just felt like it was so real."

"Dreams do that sometimes. You think you can go back to sleep now?" Arizona asked. She'd stay up with Callie if she couldn't, but she really wanted her sleep.

"Yeah, no I'm good," Callie answered. She laid back down and pulled Arizona into her arms, spooning her. She nuzzled her nose into blonde hair and took a deep breath. It was just a dream, she told herself as she fell back asleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok the dream thing was just my minds way of exploring what life would have been like if Lucia kept Aria. It's something that's been on my mind.


	18. Chapter 18

**Chapter 18**

Callie wasn't one that worried easily, unless it was called for, but right at that moment she was heading towards panic. After she had checked the OR board to make sure her wife wasn't scheduled for a surgery anytime soon, she had headed up to Peds to drag Arizona to lunch. However, her wife was nowhere to be found, and she wasn't answering any of her pages. "Where the hell could she be?" she asked no one in particular.

None of the nurses or interns had been able to answer that question. Everyone she asked, just answered with a simple, "Haven't seen her." But she knew Arizona wouldn't just go home without letting her know, so she had to be here somewhere.

She took a calming breath. After a minute of rational thinking, she headed toward Dr. Bailey's office. Surely if anyone knew where Arizona was, it would be her mentor.

Some days it was hard to believe that the same woman who had saved their daughter's life, was now teaching Arizona to do the same things for other children. They both felt themselves so lucky to be at Seattle Grace, not just because it was a number one hospital, but also because they worked under so many doctors that they had personal respect for, as well as professional.

Just as she rounded the corner that led to Bailey's office, she saw the woman walking off in the opposite direction. "Hey, Bailey, hold up," she yelled.

The smaller woman turned back around and gave Callie a hard stare. "Now I know you didn't just yell at me like a dog," she snipped, but waited for the younger woman to catch up to her.

"Sorry, I just wanted to know if you knew where Arizona was."

"Do I look like a baby-sitter? It's not my job to keep tabs on your wife, except in a teaching capacity," Bailey pointed out. Even though she'd never admit it, she enjoyed having the two women here, and was happy to see them still together after all these years. She enjoyed watching them as they made names for themselves slowly.

Callie smiled. She's learned long ago not to take offense to Bailey's attitude at times. It was just the way she was. "I know. I wouldn't normally ask you, but I'm starting to get a little worried. I can't find her anywhere and she's not answering my pages. That isn't like her."

Bailey softened at the tone in Callie's voice. Now that she was looking, she could see the worry in Callie's eyes. "I know she was going to look through some old cases as research for an upcoming surgery. Maybe she's down in the basement still."

"Thanks, Bailey," Callie smiled and took off for the bank of elevators. At least now she had a lead on where her wife could be. She hit the button for the basement and waited impatiently for the car to descend.

The instant she caught sight of her wife through the window, she knew that something wasn't right. Arizona's head was cast down with a shake of the head that suggested she was crying.

Callie opened the door quickly and headed straight for the table Arizona sat in. She took a seat beside her and lifted Arizona's chin to look in her eyes. "Hey, what's wrong?"

Arizona quickly wiped at her eyes, trying to erase the evidence of her tears. "Nothing. I'm fine," she quickly answered.

"Don't lie to me, Arizona. We don't lie to each other. You've been crying, so clearly something is wrong." Callie wasn't going to let the subject drop. She didn't like seeing Arizona upset for any reason.

"Really, it's nothing. It's just…," Arizona trailed off as her eyes once again caught sight of the patient file in front of her. "I came across it accidentally," she added.

"You came across what?" Callie asked softly. When Arizona didn't answer her, she picked the folder up off the table and studied the patient file and the charts that were in it. It wasn't until she saw the name of the patient that she realized why her wife was upset. Amelia Torres.

"Oh wow," she gasped. "I had almost forgotten her name wasn't always Robbins. She's been a Robbins for over 12 years now, she'd only been a Torres for one. "Why is this upsetting you?" she asked softly, as she too studied the file, now with a doctor's eyes.

"I don't know," Arizona sighed. She tried to find the words to explain to Callie all the thoughts floating through her mind in the last little while. "I know she almost died as a baby. We've talked about it a few times, and I know what a miracle she really was. But, I guess I never really understood what that meant. Seeing all the medical terms right there in black and white, I finally understand it.

"And then all I could think about is she could have died and I never would have met her," Arizona continued. "She's my daughter, and I might not have even had the chance to be her mother," she cried.

"Oh sweetie," Callie whispered. She wrapped an arm around the blonde's shoulder, pulling her into her body. She placed a kiss at the top of her head as she rubbed a gentle hand along her shoulder. "She didn't die though. She's here and she's healthy. And you are her mom."

"I know, I know," Arizona responded. She sat back up and wiped a hand across her face. "I think I needed to process it though."

Callie let out a half smile. "I had one of those moments too. You don't really have time when you're sitting over your preemie's incubator. Your sole focus is on what needs to happen next." Arizona nodded that she understood. She'd seen it in the parents of her patients.

"I had my moment her first night home," Callie continued. "I had fed her, her last bottle of the night and laid her down in her bassinet by my bed. She was sound asleep so I laid down next to her, but I couldn't close my eyes. I couldn't stop staring at her. I was so afraid that if I fell asleep I'd lose her in the middle of the night. Finally I just started crying, and did so for the next couple hours as I watched her sleep. I only stopped because she woke up ready for another feeding."

Arizona looked at Callie sadly. She'd never shared that with her before. When they have talked about Amelia's homecoming, it was only about how excited Callie was to have her home. "You've never…"

"Told you that before," Callie interrupted. "Honestly, I've never really thought about it since that day. I tried to forget about it I guess. Focus on the good that happened."

"Like mother, like daughter," Arizona thought, but didn't say it aloud. Torres women had a way of making themselves forget about things they'd rather not think about it. She was always worried Callie would hold something back and then it would all come crashing down later.

Like the fact that it had almost been six months of trying now and they still hadn't conceived. Arizona was terrified Callie was holding back her frustration. She would get these looks in her eyes from time to time, but she never voiced what she was thinking and feeling.

She tried to tell herself it was just that they had been too busy over the summer. No time to really think about it too hard. They'd never made it on a vacation of any sort. But they had spent a weekend at the beach as a family. If that was all they could squeeze in, Arizona was more than grateful. She loved any time she got with her three favorite girls.

"I was thinking we could go grab some lunch," Callie announced, breaking Arizona out of her thoughts. "Neither of us are on the OR board for the rest of the afternoon, so I was thinking about Di's."

"Ooh, we haven't made it over there in a while. I'm sold," Arizona told her. She closed Amelia's file and put it on top of the stack of others she had been looking at. She left them in a neat stack on the table, knowing one of the ladies that worked down here would put them all back in their right places and took her wife's hand to be pulled up.

"Do you want to change first?"

"Yeah, it'll be nice to get out of these scrubs for a while," Arizona smiled. She'd been paged to the hospital in the middle of the night and stuck there ever since. "Girls get off to school okay?" she asked, making conversation as they made their way towards the locker room.

"I guess." Arizona shot a look at Callie at her answer. "I was paged in early too, just not as early as you," Callie quickly explained. "Your mom was already up for the day, said she'd make sure they got up and ready."

"Ok, good." It wasn't often they had to rely on her mother because of their jobs, but it did happen from time to time.

"I'm sure Amelia gave her a hard time though. She's getting more and more stubborn about being 'too old for a baby-sitter.'" Callie imitated their oldest child. It wasn't that they didn't trust their kids, it was that they didn't trust the rest of the world. They wanted to protect their daughters for as long as they could.

"As much as I hate to admit it, but she's right," Arizona responded. "Lex still needs a little reminding here and there, but Amelia can get herself to and from school just fine. I still like the idea of someone keeping an eye though when we're at the hospital for more than a couple hours."

"I agree. At least we've been trying to give them some freedom. Just not as much as Amelia wishes we would. She's a stubborn thing I tell ya."

"Hmm, wonder where she gets that from," Arizona smirked.

Callie smiled and tugged on Arizona's arm stopping their progression down the hall. She pulled the smaller woman into her arms and placed a quick kiss on her lips. "She gets it from her Mama," she teased. Arizona raised an eyebrow in question. "Okay, she gets it from both of us. Are you happy?"

"Nope, but close enough." They kissed again, this time a deep, passionate kiss, forgetting for a moment where they were.

Callie pulled away and rested her forehead against her wife's. "Hi," she whispered. They hadn't yet had a proper greeting today and she'd missed her good morning kiss.

Arizona grinned. She loved this side of her wife, the one that was young and innocent and in love. "Hey," she whispered back. "We better get out of here before someone decides they need us," she said when Callie leaned in for another kiss.

Callie sighed, knowing Arizona was right. She took hold of her wife's hand once again and quickly moved them towards the locker room. It wasn't long before they were walking hand-in-hand down the street towards their favorite place to eat.

"Well if it isn't my favorite couple," Di hollered as they entered the small diner. "I thought you'd moved out of state again," she teased.

"It hasn't been that long," Arizona muttered. She tried to remember the last time they'd ate here, but realized she couldn't. "Okay, maybe it has." She remembered Callie bringing her breakfast one morning, but that had been months ago.

Callie moved to the older woman and gave her a hug. "We're busy girls these days."

"To busy for old friends. I see how it is," Di teased them. She knew how hard they'd worked to get to where they were and she was more than proud of them. They'd had more than their share of study sessions right in their favorite booth. Which was why a picture from each of their med school graduations hung on her bulletin board.

"Never too busy for you. I promise," Callie told her.

"No, just too busy to bring those gorgeous girls with you," Di said with a pointed stare.

Arizona and Callie both groaned. Over the years Di had practically become another mother to them, and they knew this was her in full on maternal lecture mode. "We'll bring the girls by soon. I promise." Arizona put in this time.

"You better," Di told them with a pointed finger. "Now you want me to kick those young'uns outta your booth?" She tilted her head to the left to point at the couple in question.

"No. The bar is fine," Callie quickly assured. She wasn't going to be the cause of a couple getting kicked out of their spot. Especially a young couple in love, which is what the two girls in their booth clearly was. It brought back memories.

"Reminds you of us, doesn't it?" Arizona asked as she climbed onto the bar stool.

Callie took another look at the two teenage girls. The young blonde one was softly rubbing the redhead's hand where it rested on the table. "A little bit, yeah. Remember our first date?"

"Oh Halloween. Oh yeah. I was drooling over your costume so bad."

"You? Oh no, I meant what I said that night. Your cowgirl costume had me dreaming of living on a farm for weeks," Callie admitted. Some days she wasn't sure how they'd made it so long before finally making love for the first time. It hadn't been an easy journey. That was for sure.

They didn't need menus, both of them knowing them by heart. Most days they didn't even bother to order, Di just instinctively knew what they wanted. Today proved no different when a chocolate milk shake was dropped in front of Arizona and a soda in front of Callie. "Tony has your orders covered," she told them.

"Halloween is next month," Arizona pointed out once Di left again. "What are we going to do?"

"Well if we're not working, we definitely should bring the girls here. Celebrate together the holiday and our first date. Then maybe you and I could have a different kind of celebrating. We might even be able to push the kids off to friends' houses if we're lucky. And spend all night celebrating," she whispered in Arizona's ear the last part.

The very idea sent tingles all over Arizona's body. It amazed her that after all these years it still only took was a look or a phrase from Callie to turn her on. She shifted uncomfortably in her seat as she leaned forward to take a sip of her shake. "You are evil, Calliope," she whispered back. "Just evil.

Callie let out a full blown laugh. "You love me anyway."

"Too true," Arizona agreed. She leaned over to whisper seductively in Callie's ear. "If you hurry and eat maybe we get in a little on-call room time."

Callie gulped and yelled towards the kitchen window for Tony to hurry up with their food. Suddenly she was a whole different kind of hungry.


	19. Chapter 19

**Chapter 19**

With a turn of the ignition, Callie got out of her car slowly and sighed at the feeling of finally being home. She was supposed to have been off over six hours ago, but just as she was about to head home, she had been paged to the ER on an emergency consult. As soon as she took a look at the patient's arm, she knew she wouldn't be leaving anytime soon. The woman needed surgery as soon as possible if they had any hope of saving her arm.

The warmth inside the home was a comfort as Callie made her way through the house. Faint noises told her that her family was likely in the living room watching TV so she made her way in that direction. She found her wife seated on one of the couch with Alexia's head in her lap. Arizona's fingers moved through their daughter's dark hair as the girl slept soundly.

"I'm home," Callie whispered quietly, so as not to wake their youngest child.

Arizona looked up and shared a smile with Callie. As gently as possible, she moved Lex off her lap and onto a pillow, wrapping the blanket around her tightly. With a tap on the remote the room descended into darkness as the TV turned off. Using the kitchen light for a guide, she took Callie's hand and pulled her into the other room.

"How'd your surgery go?"

"We managed to save the limb, but there's no telling how much nerve damage was done," Callie answered. She took a seat on one of the bar stools and watched as Arizona went about heating up a plate of leftovers for her. It was just a little thing they did for the other when one was stuck in surgery long into the night.

"Well you're a rockstar so I'm sure everything will be fine," Arizona threw a smile over her shoulder. She turned back to the microwave and set it for a couple minutes before turning back to Callie. She placed her elbows on the counter and leaned over to share a quick kiss with her wife.

"Thanks for the vote of confidence," Callie smiled back.

When the microwave buzzed, Arizona pulled the plate out and sat it in front of Callie. "You eat, I'll go get the monster to bed." She placed a quick kiss on Callie's lips and then was off towards the family room.

It wasn't an easy task, but Arizona finally managed to get Alexia awake long enough to walk her up the stairs to her room and help her into bed. Her head had barely hit the pillow before she was out once again. "Night sweetie," Arizona whispered as she laid a kiss on the girl's forehead. "Sweet dreams."

After leaving her daughter to dreamland, Arizona made a detour into her own room and changed into some pajamas before returning to her wife. Callie was just rinsing off her plate and placing it in the dishwasher when Arizona returned.

"Amelia in bed too?" Callie asked softly. She'd realized just a few moments before her other daughter wasn't in the family room and not much noise was coming from upstairs.

"No, she's at Kelly's."

Callie threw a look at the clock on the stove, before looking back at Arizona. "But it's almost midnight."

"She asked if she could spend the night so that they could watch some late night movie that was premiering tonight," Arizona explained.

"When did this happen?" Callie ground out. Her content mood was slowly draining with the knowledge that her child was somewhere other than her own bed.

"She asked me when I got home this evening." Arizona watched Callie closely trying to gauge her mood. She was looking for any way out of this without a huge argument.

"And you didn't think to ask me?" Callie's voice rose a few octaves. Her hand began to clench and unclench unnoticed.

"Sweetie," Arizona started softly, anything to calm her wife down. "You were in surgery. We let her spend the night at Kelly's all the time, or we have her over here."

"That's not the point!"

"What is the point then?" Arizona asked, trying to maintain her composure.

"You didn't even try ask me or leave a message," Callie all but yelled. Her breathing had quickened and the room felt a little too warm now. She pulled at her shirt fanning herself.

"We make decisions without each other all the time," Arizona pointed out.

Callie took a step closer to Arizona, her every thought flashing through her dark brown eyes. "It would have been nice to have a little heads up that MY daughter wasn't home before I got there to find her gone."

 _Take a deep breath_ , Arizona told herself. _You don't want to kill your wife, you love her_ , she reminded herself. She knew Callie wasn't herself right now and arguing back would only make things a hundred time worse. Even though Callie's use of the word 'my' was causing her pain.

"You know what, I can't deal with this right now. I'm so pissed," Callie snapped. Turning on her heel, she stomped out of the room and up the stairs. A slam of the door told Arizona she'd be finding somewhere else to sleep that night.

Arizona slumped down into one of the kitchen chairs and laid her head on the table. The cool wood was a welcome relief to the heated anger inside her. She kept telling herself over and over again that this would all pass. One day Callie would be herself again.

Seven months had gone buy without managing to conceive. They'd finally admitted that maybe it wouldn't be as easy as they'd hoped. Callie was now on fertility drugs to help increase their chances. They still wanted to try and make their baby. If they still hadn't conceived after several months on the drugs, they would move onto the next step of using a fertility specialist to help them. Arizona really hoped they didn't get to that point.

The last few weeks since Callie had started the shots had put them on a rollercoaster of emotions. Arizona was never sure what mood she was going to get Callie in. She could go from excited and happy to crying and angry within minutes.

She knew it would all be worth it when they had their baby, so for now she'd just have to suffer through the ups and downs as best as she could. They would make it through this. But even knowing Callie didn't mean what she said half the time didn't stop the hurt at some of the words the other woman flung at her.

Sighing, she got up from her chair and headed up the stairs. The door to their bedroom was still closed, so she knew that was a non-option still. The bed in the guestroom looked so lonely though. With a split-second decision, she entered Alexia's room and slid in next to her daughter. If she couldn't cuddle with her wife, then cuddling with her daughter was the next best thing.

The movement of the bed caused Alexia to roll over. "Mama?" she groggily asked when she found her blonde mother beside her.

"Go back to sleep, baby," Arizona told her, pulling her daughter to rest on her chest.

"What are you doing in here?" the girl mumbled around a yawn.

Arizona smiled and kissed Lex in her raven locks. "Just felt like cuddling with my girl."

"Mommy kick you out again?"

"Yep," Arizona answered but didn't elaborate. A part of her wanted to tell their girls what was going on so they understood, but another part of her believed it best if they waited. All they knew right now was that their mother wasn't acting like herself but were promised she'd be feeling like herself again soon.

It wasn't fair to put the girls on the same rollercoaster they were on. Wondering if this month would be the month that test came out positive. Neither mother was ready to answer the millions of questions that would follow either.

Taking a deep breath she closed to her mind to the troubles plaguing every thought and let herself drift off to sleep.

**~CA~**

Waking suddenly, Callie reached an arm out for her wife, but the other side of the bed was empty. _Did she get called in early?_ Callie asked herself. No, Arizona would have woken her if that was the case.

After a moment, she remembered the fight they'd had earlier. Why had she made such a big deal about Amelia sleeping over at Kelly's? And more important why did she blow up at Arizona for allowing it?

Throwing herself on her back, she groaned in frustration. These stupid drugs were making her emotions go all haywire and she hated it. Now she needed to find Arizona and apologize…again. Explain that she didn't mean any of it…again.

Forcing herself up out of bed, she wandered down the hallway. The door to the guestroom was open with no Arizona in sight, which only meant one thing. Popping her head around Alexia's door, she spotted her wife exactly where she thought she would be.

As quietly as she could, she moved to Arizona's side and shook her gently. "Arizona, sweetie, come to bed."

"I'm sleeping," Arizona groaned. Callie shook her should a little more forcefully this time, getting the blonde to open her eyes. "Callie, what are you doing up?"

"I couldn't sleep without you. Come back to bed."

Arizona nodded and slowly separated herself from their daughter, making sure she didn't wake. As quietly as possible they went back to their room, shutting the door behind them.

"I'm so sorry," Callie apologized and wrapped her arms around the smaller woman.

Arizona returned the embrace, taking in the scent that was uniquely Callie, letting it calm her like nothing else ever could. "I know you didn't. It's those stupid drugs. Well they aren't stupid, but you know what I mean."

"Yeah, I know what you mean. They are making me feel like I'm losing my mind," Callie admitted. They had fought more in the past couple weeks than they had in years. It seemed ludicrous that something so small could cause such an effect.

"Do you want to stop taking them?" Arizona asked softly. While it would lower their chances again and make it take a long while still to get their baby, she didn't want Callie to feel like she was obligated to take them.

"No, that's not what I want. But can you keep putting up with me like this?" Callie asked almost afraid of the answer. Tonight had been mild in comparison to their last little blow out. She'd said some really nasty things to her wife and she still couldn't feel anything but regret for it.

Arizona smiled and kissed Callie on the lips, urging her to open up as they explored familiar territory. She gave her another quick peck after they pulled apart before looking into the brown eyes of her love. "I love you so much. Nothing you yell or scream at me will ever change that. I know you're not yourself when you're like that."

"But," Callie tried to argue.

"No buts. Really, I know you don't mean what you say half the time. And at the end of it all you still love me too. That's really what matters anyway."

Callie nodded and buried her head in Arizona's shoulder. She pressed a kiss to the other woman's collarbone. "Still, I'm sorry."

Arizona lifted Callie's head up to look into her eyes. "I know. Now let's go to bed. Lack of sleep isn't helping anyone."

Moving to their respective sides, they crawled under the covers, meeting in the middle so that they could wrap their arms around each other. The same way they been doing for almost 14 years now.

"I meant it when I said I can't sleep without you. Even when I manage to fall asleep I wake up an hour or two later searching for you," Callie admitted.

"I do the same thing. Even when I know you're not there because you got called in or something, I still try to find you, just in case." Arizona cuddled closer, her hand automatically falling to lightly rub Callie's stomach as they settle in. Every night she sent up a wish for the same thing, that their baby would soon be growing in her wife's womb. "Alexia asked if you kicked me out again."

Guilt settled over Callie again. Her mood swings weren't just affecting her wife, they were affecting their children as well. She was better at controlling herself in front of them, but it wasn't always easy. "Do you think we should have told them?"

Arizona thought about it again, remember her earlier train of thought. "No, I don't. I think it would have made it even harder on all of us, at least in the beginning. But now, with the fertility drugs, I'm not sure. They know something is going on, they just don't know what."

"Yeah, I think we should tell them soon. Maybe after the next pregnancy test. Whether it comes out positive or negative," Callie suggests.

"I can agree to that."

"Good. Now sleep," Callie commanded. The two smiled and got in one more, quick kiss before drifting off back to sleep.

**~CA~**

Callie paced back and forth across her bedroom floor, waiting for Arizona to get home. She glanced for about the hundredth time towards the bathroom, then continued her pacing. The cell phone in her hand beeped to signal she had a new message. She opened it up with a smile to see Arizona was finally on her way home.

Should she go downstairs? Or should she wait up here? Neither option seemed like the good one.

The girls were over at their grandparents' house for dinner. Barbara had agreed to keep them as long as was needed, even though she couldn't figure out what Callie's rambling was telling her. So now Callie was in a quiet house pacing back and forth.

"Callie?" a voice yelled a few minutes later.

"Upstairs."

Arizona climbed the stairs quickly. To say she was a little worried was an understatement. Callie had text her just over an hour ago telling her to get home as soon as she could. And when she tried to ask why the other woman wouldn't tell her anything.

"What's going on? Is it the girls? Is one of them sick? Hurt?" she asked as she entered the room to find her wife pacing. Neither daughter was in sight so she couldn't imagine it had anything to do with either of them.

"No, they are both fine. They are eating with your parents tonight," Callie answered.

"Then what is going on? Because you're kind of scaring me." Arizona grabbed onto Callie's arm, holding her in place.

Callie looked into Arizona's eyes, taking calm in the blue before her. "I just had this feeling I couldn't explain it. I've just been feeling a little off. I thought maybe it was still just the drugs messing with me, but then I wasn't so sure," Callie rambled.

"Slow down and just tell me," Arizona said softly.

"I took a test."

Arizona took a deep breath, holding back her emotions. "Well, what did it say?" she asked, and then waited and hoped for an answer that would change their lives forever.


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter 20**

" _I took a test."_

_Arizona took a deep breath, holding back her emotions. "Well, what did it say?" she asked, and then waited and hoped for an answer that would change their lives forever._

Callie pointed at the bathroom. "Go see for yourself," she told her wife. The blonde did as she was told and wandered into the bathroom.

A few seconds later, Arizona came back, stopping in the doorway as she stared down at the little stick in her hands. A smile graced her face as she looked from it to Callie. "We did it?" she asked softly, completely in awe at the possibility. "You're actually pregnant?"

Callie smiled back at her and made her way to her wife. "It certainly looks that way. We should probably get a blood test done to be sure though." Inside she was jumping for joy at even the remote possibility that she was pregnant. But she was trying to keep that in check until they had concrete proof. After so many negative tests, she wanted to be sure before they celebrated.

"Well then let's go!" Arizona exclaimed. "Let's run over to the hospital and I'll take a blood sample. We'll put a rush order on it. Perks of being a surgeon," she grinned.

Callie nodded her head in agreement and sat down on their bed so she could bend over and retrieve her shoes from where she kicked them underneath. She'd barely managed to tug them both on before Arizona was pulling at her to stand. A small grin found its way onto her face while she watched her wife act like a kid on Christmas morning.

As they drove the few short miles to the hospital, Callie was tasked with reminding Arizona to keep to the speed limit. She wasn't usually one to speed, but in her excitement, she kept forgetting to focus on the task at hand.

"You know, we're going to have to be sneaky. Keep out of people's eyesight," Callie pointed out as Arizona parked the car. The wrong person saw them and best case scenario would be a million questions. Worst case would be being pulled into a consult or anything else work related.

Arizona thought about it for a minute and realized Callie was right. "My office is closer. Plus there is a supply closet just a few doors down. We should have everything we need in there."

In silent agreement the two quickly made their way towards the peds ward. They held in a laugh every time they'd duck into another room, or around a corner when someone started coming their way. The whole thing made them feel childish, but they let out a sigh of relief when they closed and locked the door to Arizona's office with supplies in hand.

They moved in sync to Arizona's desk and sat on opposite sides. Callie pulled off her jacket and extended her arm over the desk, while Arizona got the needle and vial all ready. She found a vein easily, but took several deep breaths before she even touched the needle to Callie's arm.

Every bit of this moment seemed so surreal to her. Over the years she had taken many blood samples, and poked countless people with a needle. But this was her wife sitting in front of her. And even though she knew it would only hurt for a minute, the idea of doing anything to cause her wife pain was difficult.

Not to mention this one little vial could change their whole lives.

Callie watched the emotions play on Arizona's face. She could see every thought as it flashed through those blue eyes. With her free hand she touched Arizona softly. "It's okay, just do it," she told Arizona, breaking her out of her thoughts.

With vial in hand, Arizona peered out the door. She knew she'd never make it down to the lab without being seen, so she was happy to catch a glimpse of one of her favorite nurses. "Psst, Mellie," Arizona called softly hoping to only catch the attention of the nurse. When the brunette looked her way, Arizona signaled for her to come over.

"First off, you never saw me. Got it?" she asked. She waited for the brunette to nod her head before continuing. "Will you run this down to the lab and tell them Dr. Robbins needs a rush on it. Then just slide the results under the door when you get them."

"Yes, Dr. Robbins," Mellie agreed and took off down the hall.

The two women spent the next little while laying snuggled together on Arizona's couch as they waited for the results. They chatted softly about their day now that they finally had a chance to catch up.

They were interrupted by the sound of paper sliding along the floor. Two sets of eyes snapped to the white sheet sitting just a few feet away, neither wanting to get up and get it. Finally Arizona decided they were being silly and climbed over Callie. She picked up the paper carefully, as if it was some prized possession and read over the results twice before looking at Callie.

"Well?" Callie asked, not able to stand it any longer.

"Looks like our food bill is about to go up now that you're eating for two," Arizona said with the biggest grin Callie had ever seen on her wife.

"I'm pregnant?"

"You're pregnant! We are so celebrating!" Arizona squealed as she pulled her wife in for a deep kiss. She was suddenly very grateful they both had the day off the next day.

**~CA~**

Noise floating up the stairs, alerted both women that their daughters had returned from their grandparents house. Neither of them had the motivation to move from their very comfy position, however. Hours and hours of love making had zapped all their energy.

"Last night was real right?" Callie whispered, not yet ready to break the spell around them.

Arizona nodded her head where it laid on Callie's naked chest and placed a kiss in the middle of the other woman's rib cage. "Yeah, it was real."

"Do you think we should tell the girls now?" Callie asked. "It's our day off and neither of us are on-call. It could be our only chance for a while," she pointed out. They'd talked about telling the girls after the next test regardless of the outcome. But now there actually was a baby and they couldn't be sure how the girls would react. Most likely with a lot of questions.

"We probably should. Let them know that their mom is still going to be a hormonal basket case, but for a whole different reason now," Arizona teased.

Callie reached down between their bodies and pinched Arizona's butt cheek. "You suck," she told her, but inside she was smiling. "We should do something fun today, movie, shopping, anything but stay in this house all day."

"Definitely. Which should we do first? Have our talk or play?"

Callie weighed their options in her mind. If they took the girls out first and then told them, their daughters might feel like they were just trying to butter them up. But if they reacted badly to the news then it could put a damper on the whole day. "Let's spend some time with them first, then tell them tonight after we get home."

"Guess that means I need to get dressed huh?" Arizona pouted. "You know how much I'd prefer laying here naked with you."

Callie tilted her wife's face up so she could place a kiss on her lips. "I'd love that two, but we got two kids who aren't going to wait forever for us to make an appearance. They are bound to come up here any time now."

Arizona groaned but rolled off Callie. With a hand on the doorframe leading into their bathroom, Arizona threw a look over her shoulder. "Are you at least going to join me for a shower?"

Callie threw off the covers faster than either of them could blink. "You bet your ass I am!" As soon as she'd advanced on her wife, she gave a light smack across firm butt cheeks and pushed her wife inside the room, closing the door behind them.

**~CA~**

"So what do you guys want to do?" Callie asked as they all climbed into the car a couple hours later. She looked first at her wife, then at each of her girls in the backseat through the mirror.

"Bowling." "Mini-golf," Amelia and Alexia yell at the same time.

"Arizona?" Callie asks, needing a tie breaker. She doesn't care what they do, she's just looking forward to spending a whole day with her family.

"Either works for me," Arizona chimes in.

Callie rolls her eyes and groans. She starts the car and backs out of their driveway. "You best decide which you want to do first before we get to the Family Fun Center, or else I'm picking the activities for the rest of the day," she warns.

As Callie drove, she tried to block out the chatter of three very eager girls discussing how they wanted the day to go. She instead focused on the drive, maneuvering through traffic as she headed towards the fun center.

The Family Fun Center had been built while their family was living out of state for med school. They had discovered it on one of their visits home for the holidays and had become frequent visitors since moving back. It was a massive warehouse-like building that house many activities for families to enjoy together including indoor mini-golf, bowling, laser tag, and even rock climbing. It also had its own arcade and restaurant. It was announced they'd also soon be adding an indoor waterpark, which the girls were looking forward too.

Just as Callie throws the car into park, her family has finally decided that they would golf first and then bowl. Callie lets out a relieved sigh as she climbs out of the car and waited for her family to do the same before locking the doors.

For a Saturday, the fun center was full, but not so overly crowded you didn't want to be there. Callie set up their passes for the day with the cashier while the rest of the family wandered off in search of things to look at. She was always the one that ended taking up the responsibility of head of her family, since Arizona had the same attention span their children did.

They all took their passes from Callie and waited while golf attendant marked them before picking out a ball and club for themselves.

"Singles or teams?" Callie asked.

"Teams," the rest of them shouted. "Lex is on my team," Arizona quickly added.

"Um, no," Callie answered back. "We're switching the teams up this time, sweetheart. I get Lex," she told her wife. Arizona always claimed Lex when they played mini-golf, and Callie and Amelia always lost. This time they'd be a little more on even ground.

Arizona let out a grumbled 'fine.' By her very nature she was overly competitive and didn't like to lose. She knew she had the advantage with Alexia and thus always called for her to be on her team. She'd just have to find some other way to beat Callie this time.

As the youngest, Alexia set her ball up on the course and tried to figure out her shot. This first hole was an easy one, no real obstacles, just a simple curve. But she knew if she lined it up just right she could get a hole-in-one easily. With a quick swing of the club, she drove the ball right into the center of the curve which then sent it barreling straight for the hole.

"Alright Lex!" Callie exclaimed, giving her daughter a high five as the ball plunked down into the hole. She turned a smug grin to her wife, ignoring the glare Arizona was giving the both of them.

The blonde walked over to her oldest daughter and put both hands on her shoulders. She squeezed them much like a coach does to a player before a big game, trying to psych them up. "You got this Amelia," she tells her daughter confidently.

The girl nods her head at her mama and swings her club. Amelia's ball makes the same trajectory that her sister's did, but stops just a little left of the hole. "Dang," the teen shouts.

"It's okay. You did good," Arizona told her as she lined up her own shot.

The rest of the game goes by quickly as each of the team goes neck and neck with each other. Callie and Lex would hold the lead for a few holes and then Arizona and Amelia would pull ahead and hold onto their lead for a little while.

At the 17th hole was the castle. The family of four knew this one well. It was the hole that could make or break the game for either team. You had to get the ball up the draw bridge or else the moat would send your ball to the wrong side of the castle and you had to work you way around the back side.

"You can do it, Lex," Callie encouraged.

"I've never hit this one before," Lex responded. She'd tried over the years to line up the perfect shot, but every time her ball always landed in the moat.

Callie looked her daughter square in the eye. "There is a first time for everything. Just because you haven't before, doesn't mean you won't today," she told her.

Alexia nodded and squared her shoulders, eyeing the white plastic gutter that made up the draw bridge. She took two practice swings just like her mama taught her, before stepping back behind her ball. She took a swing and watched as her ball sailed up into the castle and out the left side, landing just a foot away from the hole. "YES!"

"Good job, kid," Arizona smiled. She knew this could now mean the end of winning for her and Amelia, but she wasn't going to let that stop her from praising her daughter. She knew how much Alexia hated this hole just because she could never get the ball to go where she wanted it too. She was proud her daughter finally did it.

Amelia was next and lined her shot up. She'd only ever hit the bridge once by pure accident, so she didn't even worry about it as she watched her ball shoot out the right side of the castle, as far from the hole as possible.

Arizona, the master of mini-golf, managed to get hers up and over the bridge, sending her ball just inches beside Alexia's. However, Callie's didn't follow the same trail. She knew even before the club connected with the ball that she'd be joining Amelia on the right side of the castle.

Alexia and Arizona finished up their turns easily, knocking the ball in on the second shot. Now it was up to Callie and Amelia to see which team would finish this game the winner. The 18th hole was an easy one that rarely anyone failed to get it in on the first or second try, so it was all dependent on this one hole.

Amelia managed to get her ball in with only three more hits. If Callie could hit it in two, they'd win for sure, but if she got three or higher it became anyone's game. She knocked it around the corner, only to have it stop half way. She had one shot now to get it the rest of the way around the castle and into the hole.

Mapping out her shot, she took a swing and they all watched with baited breath as the ball rolled right towards the hole. Callie didn't move or blink as the ball inched closer and closer to the hole. Instead of dropping down inside, however, it popped over the hole and stopped a few inches away. With shoulders slumped, Callie walked over and gave it the nudge it needed to plop it down in.

The teams were all tied as they stood in front of the 18th hole. All it would take now was one person to miss their shot. If no one did they'd walk out with a tie. Of course, they all managed to get it in on the first try. Leaving the course with a tie did not sit well with Arizona, but there was nothing she could do about it. Especially since none of her family was up for a rematch.

The foursome handed in their clubs and made their way towards the bowling alley, ready to move on to another game. As they tied their rental shoes on they decided it would be the kids verses the adults this time. The girls managed to win by over 10 pins, but Arizona had the highest score of them all. It was Callie's many gutter balls that lost them the game.

After a quick lunch of hot dogs and fries, the four of them hit the laser tag arena for their last activity of the day. Arizona of course came out the winner again. Never one to be defeated, she found herself a position high on the course and shot her family at each opportunity. None of them able to return the favor since none of them could find her.

Tired from the day's events the drive home was mostly done in silence. They all headed slowly into the house. The girls moved to head up to their rooms, but before they could the mother called their names.

"Hold up, girls. Come sit down for a minute," Callie instructed. "Your Mama and I need to talk to you about something."

The two tired girls did as they were told and sat down beside each other, facing both their mothers. "What is it?" Amelia asked, worry in her voice. Her mothers had both been acting weird for a while and she was suddenly fearful something was wrong.

"Nothing bad," Callie quickly assured. She looked first at Arizona and got a nod to continue. Callie took her wife's hand in her own, squeezing it gently for comfort. "I'm pregnant."

Those two words sent the room into absolute silence.


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: Alright this chapter was a tough one. I pretty much planned this conversation from the very beginning but I wanted to get it right. I wanted it to be realistic and done with care. So I hope I did accomplished that.
> 
> HAPPY GREY'S DAY!

**Chapter 21**

"Wha… What?" Amelia sputtered out. There was no way she heard what she thought she had just heard. Her mom couldn't be pregnant. That just didn't seem possible.

Alexia on the other hand, just sat there trying to figure out what that meant exactly. She understood what being pregnant meant, her mom was going to have a baby. She just didn't really grasp how it would all affect them.

Callie and Arizona sat in the silence and gave their girls a few moments to process the news. They were already expecting a large number of questions from both children and had decided that they would try and answer them as honestly as they could. It was one thing they had easily agreed upon.

"Are you serious?" Amelia finally asked. She had been waiting for either of her mothers to bust out into laughter and admit it was a joke. When neither did, she finally started to believe.

"Yes, your mom is really going to have a baby," Arizona answered and then paused. The hardest part in all this would be figuring out what to say and how to say it. "We actually started trying a few months back. That's why your mom has been so grumpy lately," she teased and bumped Callie's shoulder to let her know she was kidding.

"Why now?" Amelia asked.

Callie let out a sigh. "It's just been the four of us for over ten years now. And we love our family the way it is," she added quickly so neither girl felt unloved. "Mama and I both understand what an adjustment this is going to be. We always planned on having more kids, but with school and our residencies, it just never happened."

When neither girl said anything for several minutes, Arizona decided to get them to view it from a different angle. "You guys like playing with JoJo, don't you? And Nicky?" Both girls nodded their heads. "Well now you'll have your own little brother or sister to play with. We are NOT trying to replace you two," she stressed.

"Like we could even if we tried," Callie quickly added with a smile. "Still our family doesn't feel complete yet. Like we needed to expand it some more. Do you understand?"

Amelia nodded her head, but still she had so many questions. So much of this didn't seem to make any sense to her. Why would her parents want another baby now?

"So I won't be the baby anymore?" Alexia asked in a quiet voice. She wasn't sure she liked that idea. She enjoyed being the baby and all the perks that came with that.

Callie moved next to their youngest and pulled Alexia into her lap, holding her close. "You'll always be my baby," she told her and placed a kiss in the little girl's dark hair. "And we will NEVER stop loving either one of you."

"We know that, Mom," Amelia rolled her eyes. Some things were just a given.

"Good."

"Do you have any other questions? Anything at all?" Arizona asked, opening the door for them to ask anything they want. Both mothers watched as Amelia opened her mouth, but then hesitated. "It's okay. You can ask anything and we'll both try to answer as best as we can," Arizona told her, throwing a look at her wife who nodded her head in agreement.

"How is mom pregnant?"

"What do you mean, sweetie?" Callie asked. She was pretty sure she knew what Amelia was asking, but she wanted to make sure so that they didn't say something that confused them or didn't answer the question.

Amelia sat in silence for a moment, trying to figure out how to word her question. They'd studied reproduction in biology recently and she had a lot of questions. Not just about her mom being pregnant now, but also how she and Lex came to be. She just hadn't dared asked before today. "In biology they told us it takes a man and a woman to make a baby, but you are both women."

Alexia wiggled around in her mom's lap trying to get more comfortable. With her head resting on Callie's shoulder, she looked at her Mama waiting for the answer. She wanted to know everything her big sister knew. Callie wrapped her arms tighter around her youngest, holding her close and waited for Arizona to take the lead on this one.

"That's true," Arizona agreed. "Which typically happens during sex. Which neither of you better be having for a long time from now," she quickly added. As upsetting as it was to know her girls were old enough to know what sex was, and she knew that they did because they'd talked a little about it in the past, it made this conversation easier to explain. "But there are other ways to conceive a baby.

"Like how?" Lex asked, fully interested now.

Callie could see the curiosity in Amelia's eyes. She wanted to know, to understand. Lex looked from one mother to the other, waiting for one of them to explain it to them.

"It takes a woman's egg and a man's umm…"

Callie laughed. Arizona was a doctor, could spout off medical terms far more disgusting, but she could never make herself say that one tiny little word. "Sperm," she finished for her wife. "Your Mama doesn't like to say that word though. She thinks it's gross," Callie teased her wife.

"It is," Arizona huffed and stuck her tongue out at her wife. "As I was saying," she continued. "It does take an egg and sperm," she choked out. She paused for a moment, trying to figure out how to explain this to her children. "Sometimes men will donate their sperm to help couples have children. Couples like me and your mom."

"Did you meet him?" Amelia asked. "Like do you know who he is and stuff."

Arizona looked to Callie to see if she wanted her to keep going on. They'd talked to Tim about this being a possibility and he was fine with them telling the girls. "Some people like to keep it anonymous, but in our case we know who it is."

"Who is it?" Lex asked.

"Before we tell you. I want you to stress that you belong to Mama and me. Nothing will ever change that. Do you understand?" Callie asked. "Not that it's important because we would love all our children no matter where they came from. I wouldn't love either of you any less if you were adopted, nor would I love this baby any less if he or she was adopted. Same goes for Mama."

Arizona nodded her head in agreement. "What Mom is trying to tell you, is that we decided to have a baby as genetically linked to both of us as possible. So your Uncle Tim helped us out."

"So Uncle Tim is the baby's dad?" Amelia asked.

"He's the sperm donor yes," Callie answered this time. "But he's still going to be uncle."

"Is that how we were made too?" came another question from Amelia. Alexia, for the most part, was willing to let Amelia take the lead. Her big sister knew the better questions to ask.

"Alexia you of course know that I gave birth to you," Arizona started. "You both have seen the pictures. But in that case, a doctor took some of Mom's eggs and mixed them with Tim's sperm and put it in me."

Alexia turned a questioning eye to her Mom, silently asking if what her Mama said was true. Callie nodded her head and gave Lex a quick squeeze. "You've been a mommy's girl since the day you were born though," she smiled.

"What about me?"

Callie and Arizona shared a look. They both knew once this door was open that this question was coming. It was going to be the hardest one to answer. Arizona moved next to Amelia and wrapped an arm around her shoulder in a show of support. What they needed to tell her wouldn't be easy and they both knew that. It was all up to Callie to answer this one.

"You remember when we talked about how bad decisions can have serious consequences?" This peeked the girls' interest as they wondered what that had to do with Amelia. "Well when I was younger I was a really good kid who made a very stupid decision. Everything turned out okay and I love my life the way it is now, but still I made a bad choice and I hope you two don't do the same."

"What did you do?" Lex asked, snuggling deeper into Callie's chest.

"I'm sure you two have noticed that your Mama and I are younger than most of your friends' parents. That's because I got pregnant with you, Amelia, when I was only 17. I went to a party and got so drunk I couldn't remember what happened the next morning. A few months later I found out I was pregnant with you. I wouldn't change it for the world, because I am so happy to have you, but still I made a very bad decision," Callie finished with a hand on Amelia's shoulder.

Amelia looked hard at her mother, trying to figure everything out in her mind. It wasn't making sense though. Her mom slept with some guy. "You cheated on Mama?"

"Um… I didn't know your Mama then. We weren't together yet," Callie answered hesitantly.

"You weren't?" Amelia asked, confused.

Now it was Arizona's turn to answer the hard questions. "Sweetie, your Mom and I didn't meet until after you were born. You were five months old when I saw you for the first time."

That didn't make sense. That couldn't be true. From Amelia's earliest memory Arizona had been there. She couldn't remember a life without her Mama in it. "You weren't always my mom?" Shrugging out of Arizona's hold, Amelia stood up and faced both of her parents. "I'm not a Robbins. You're not my mom?" her voice cracks.

"Honey, of course I am," Arizona answers. She tried to reach for Amelia, but the girl backs away before she could touch her.

"Did you even want me?" Arizona opened her mouth to speak but before she could Amelia backs away further. "I can't… This is too much… I just…"

The two mothers watched as their daughter turned and left the room. A slam of the door reverberated around the house a few moments later. At least she'd just stormed up to her room. They would have been far more worried if she'd took off out of the house.

"Let me go…" Callie started as she started to slide Alexia up off her lap.

Arizona stopped her. "No, I think this is between me and her. Let's give her a minute to cool down and then I'll go talk to her."

"I hate this so much," Callie groaned.

"We always knew this could happen."

"I know, but it still sucks," Callie admitted. She turned to the girl that wasn't so little anymore, but still so innocent. "You okay kiddo?"

"Yeah, I'm fine," Alexia answered.

"You know we love you right?"

Alexia smiled. "Of course. I love you, too."

"Good," both mothers stated and gave their daughter a kiss on each cheek.

A few minutes later, Arizona parted from her girls and headed up the stairs quietly. There was silence beyond the door to Amelia's room. She wasn't sure if that was a good thing or a bad thing. Her daughter had never been that upset before.

She knocked softly. "Amelia, can I come in sweetie?" No answer. "Please, baby. Let's talk," she tried again.

Arizona wasn't sure what it was Amelia mumbled, but took it as an invitation and opened the door. Her daughter was curled up in the fetal position on her bed with her body wrapped around her pillow. Arizona walked over and took a seat beside her and ran a hand along Amelia's back.

"You may not believe me, but even though I didn't know you when you were born, I was still your mom," Arizona began, letting her mind get transported back in time. "Before Grandma and Grandpa moved us to Seattle, we moved almost every year. If I remember right I was in 14 different schools before I graduated. Through all that, I always felt like something was missing my life. Someone was missing, or someones.

"Then we moved here and I met your mom and finally the hole in my heart closed just a little bit. But do you know when I finally felt like I was whole?"

Amelia rolled onto her back and looked at her Mama. "No, when?"

"The first time your Mom laid you in my arms. It was like everything was right with the world. Like I was exactly where I was meant to be. I didn't know what it meant at the time, but later I knew it was in that moment I became your mom. And I haven't regretted it a day since," Arizona told her.

"Really?"

"Really," Arizona smiled. "You know how we always have a family celebration the first week in June?"

"Yeah." Amelia put all her focus on her mother now. She'd asked a few times over the years what they were celebrating, but she'd always been told they'd tell her when she was older. Now she was finally going to have an answer.

"We are celebrating the day I was officially able to adopt you," Arizona explained. "And you know what else?" Amelia shook her head no. "You were my daughter before I even married your mom. You know what that means? It means I chose you. I didn't get stuck with you because I loved your mom. I loved you so much I wanted to be your mom long before I even agreed to marry your mom."

"It's true," Callie said from the doorway. She had decided to come see how her wife and daughter were doing since it was so quiet from downstairs. "Arizona has been your mom since the day she held you for the first time. I saw it in her eyes. That look like she wanted you in her life forever. It wasn't something we understood then, but still it was there."

"You started calling me 'Mama' all on your own," Arizona grinned. "I'd never been so happy." She wanted Amelia to understand how much she really did love her. "I don't feel any differently about you then I do about your sister, or how I'll feel about the new baby. You are all my children."

Amelia studied both of her moms carefully. She saw nothing but absolute honesty in their eyes. It gave her comfort. "I get that now. I love you, too. I'm glad you're my mom, but I still have a dad." She wasn't sure if it was a statement or a question.

Callie took a seat on the other side of Amelia. She shared a quick look with her wife before looking back down at Amelia. "You do."

"Do you know who he is?"

Callie exchanged another look with Arizona, before returning her attention to her daughter. "We do. Do you want to know who he is?"

Amelia looked at her mama. She'd been there all her life. And she understood better now what that all meant. She was chosen. Her mama didn't have to love her, she didn't have to adopt her, but she did. She chose Amelia to be her daughter. That made her special. "If you don't want me to know, then that's fine." She didn't want to hurt her mama's feelings.

Amelia's eyes were as expressive as her wife's so Arizona knew instantly what her daughter was thinking. "Sweetie, you're not going to hurt me by wanting to know. I'm more than happy to give you his number right now and let you call him. I know at the end of the day I'm still your mom."

"So he knows about me?"

"He does," Callie answered. "And if there ever comes a time where you're ready to talk to him, he is more than willing to talk to you. You know the guy who sends you cards and money for your birthday and Christmas? He signs them Uncle Joe."

"Yeah. That's him?" Now things made a lot more sense. She wondered a few times over the years who he was. He sent stuff to Alexia too, but never as much as he sent to her.

"Yeah. He knew he wasn't ready to be a dad. And he saw how happy your Mama was to fill the role so he stepped back. But that doesn't mean he doesn't love you. We send him letters and pictures of you all the time, and he always answers back that he loved them," Callie explained further.

"If you ever want to meet him, he wants to meet you. If you don't, he understands that too. He knows you have a family who loves you. He's just happy to be 'Uncle Joe'," Arizona told her.

"I don't think I want to meet him. At least not right now."

"That's fine," Callie reassures her. "If you ever change your mind, don't hesitate to tell your Mama or me."

"Okay."

"Anything else on your mind?" Arizona asked.

"Yeah actually." Amelia paused for dramatic effect. Both mothers waited in silence, wondering what could possibly come out of their daughter's mouth now. "Can we have some ice cream?"

Callie and Arizona could only laugh as they drug their daughter out the door and to the kitchen.


	22. Chapter 22

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Happy Grey's Day everyone! Hope you are all ready for the finale! I took today and tomorrow off from work so if it was horrible I could drink! LOL

**Chapter 22**

"Mom!" Amelia yelled, jolting Callie awake. "We need breakfast," her daughter yelled again as she climbed the steps toward her mothers' room.

With a grunt, Callie attempted to sit up only to have a wave of nausea hit her full force. "Okay, okay, not moving," she told her stomach and laid back down. She pulled the covers up to her chin and tried to relax in hopes of getting the feeling to disappear.

Before she could even close her eyes she heard pounding on her bedroom door. "Mom, we're hungry," Amelia tried again.

"Go away," Callie mumbled into the pillow quietly.

The handle on the door jiggled as Amelia turned to open it. "Mom?" she asked a little quieter this time, but still full of impatience. "It's almost time for school and we still haven't had breakfast."

Callie groaned and tried to get up a second time. "Okay hold on," she told her daughter. The nausea intensified, knocking her back on the bed.

"Mom!"

"What is going on in here?" Arizona asked as she entered the room. She'd come home from an overnight shift at the hospital to hear her daughter screaming and she didn't like it one bit.

"We need breakfast," Amelia stated again, this time to her other mother.

"I'm pretty sure you know how to pour yourself a bowl of cereal," Arizona told her.

"But…"

Arizona held up a finger to stop her daughter's whine. "No buts. Mom isn't going to feel like cooking up breakfast every morning for a while. You are going to have to get used to things being a little different around here. Now hurry and go eat," she ordered.

"It's okay, I can…" Callie mumbled as she made a third attempt to get up.

"No, you can't," Arizona argued. "Lay back down and I'll go get you some crackers." Callie nodded her head and snuggled down into the comforter once again.

Arizona placed a kiss on her wife's forehead before heading down to the kitchen. She found both of her daughters sitting at the bar with a bowl of cold cereal in front of them. "Listen guys," she started. "With mom's pregnancy, things aren't going to be quite the same around here. She's not going to be able to do some of the things you're used to her doing. Understand?" Both girls nodded their heads.

"Good. I'll add some frozen waffles to the grocery list and a few other easy to make breakfasts, but for now you'll just have to deal with cereal," she told them. "Have a good day at school. I love you both," she finished, giving each of them a kiss on the back of their heads.

When she finally made it back up to her room with crackers and a bottle of water, her wife was nowhere in sight. Noises from their bathroom told Arizona that Callie had finally lost the battle with her stomach. She set the crackers and water down on the dresser before heading into the bathroom.

Callie was hunched over the toilet as her body tried to rid itself of what little was in her stomach. She'd been reduced to dry heaves by the time Arizona had found her. Her wife still stood behind her and pulled her hair away from her face and used her free hand to run it soothingly down Callie's back.

It was several minutes more before Callie finally felt well enough to risk moving away from the toilet. She leaned back against the counter, trying to catch her breath. She didn't yet have the energy to stand up. If she hadn't known she was pregnant before, she was sure now.

Arizona grabbed a clean washcloth and ran it under warm water. She gently washed her wife's face the same way Callie had done for her when she was pregnant with Alexia. She now understood the need to take care of the person that was carrying your child. She regretted each and every time she'd accused Callie of hovering during her own pregnancy.

And they hadn't even been surgeons with crazy hours back then. They'd merely been college students.

" _Bye, bye, baby girl," Arizona told a two year old Amelia. "We'll be back after classes." The little girl barely managed to wave, instead focused on the cut up pancakes she was munching on._

" _Have a good day," Barbara told her daughter in an attempt to send her off to school._

_Arizona saw the look in her mother's eyes and knew what she was doing. With a huff she walked toward the door, just as Callie was coming up the stairs from the basement with both of their book bags on her shoulders. She moved to take hers from her wife, only to have Callie tighten her hold._

" _I got it," Callie told her. Arizona groaned, but allowed the gesture since it would only be a quick trip to the car anyway._

_Callie hurried ahead and dumped the bags into the backseat before meeting her wife on the passenger side of the SUV. She opened the door for Arizona and then put a hand on her back as she helped Arizona take a seat._

_Once Callie finally managed to find an open park on campus the whole thing was repeated again with Callie helping her wife out of the car and then taking both of their bags. Arizona tried to reach for hers again, but once again was shrugged off. "I'm pregnant not an invalid," she all but shouted._

" _You're almost seven months pregnant, Arizona. You need to start taking it easy," Callie told her. They'd soon come upon the time when Callie went into labor with Amelia and until they passed that point, Callie wouldn't be able to relax._

" _You'll hurt your back carrying both of our bags," Arizona argued._

" _I'll be fine," Callie quickly dismissed._

_Knowing it was useless to argue any further, Arizona turned her back on her wife and stormed toward their first class of the day. Callie watched her walk away and knew she was in trouble, but she was fine with that so long as their baby stayed in Arizona's womb until it was time to come out._

_Arizona dropped down into her usual chair and threw her arms over her chest. A clear sign to her wife that she was upset and she wasn't open to talking about it. Callie sat next to her quietly and opened their bags taking out what they needed for today's lecture. She followed it up with a water bottle and a snack bar that she sat on Arizona's desk._

_Arizona glared at her wife. The gesture only made the blonde feel like her wife believed she wasn't taking care of herself and their child. She was determined not to use one of the items. About halfway through class, however, that was no longer an option. To her credit, Callie didn't even offer a grin of triumph as Arizona bit into the bar._

_Hours later when they returned home, Barbara was surprised to hear shouting out in their driveway. It didn't take long for her to figure out that her daughter was yelling at Callie. Rare occurrence that it was had her extremely curious. Her two girls never seemed to fight._

" _You're hovering and I can't take it," Arizona yelled as she threw open the kitchen door. "You best be wise and not follow me," she spat as she headed down the stairs towards their basement apartment._

_Following her wife inside, Callie did as she was told and resisted the urge to follow her wife. Instead she headed into the living room where she found her daughter playing with blocks. She sat down beside her little girl and began helping her build a tower._

" _Everything alright?" Barbara asked, concerned._

" _Yep. Just your daughter and her stubbornness," Callie answered with a smile._

_The older woman was happy to see Callie at least didn't appear upset over their fight. She wouldn't say she was smug about it either, more indifferent. "Are you sure?" she asked again._

" _Yeah, we're good," Callie promised. "She'll get over it when she realizes I'm just trying to take care of her and the baby."_

" _There's protective and then there's overprotective," Barbara pointed out. "Maybe you should see it from Arizona's point of view. See which one she's seeing." Barbara tried to stay out of the middle of her girls' relationship, but sometimes one or the other needed a push in the right direction. This appeared to be one of those times. Especially since it wasn't the first time Barbara had heard Arizona accuse Callie of hovering._

_Callie thought about it for a moment. She had, had no one to take care for her during her pregnancy so she couldn't really say how would feel in Arizona's shoes. Maybe a little bit of compromise was in order._

" _Come on, squirt. Let's go shopping," Callie announced as she pulled her daughter away from her blocks. "I got an idea for a present to buy Mama."_

" _Mama?" Amelia asked as she looked around the room. "Where she?" the toddler asked, only now realizing her other mother wasn't in the room._

" _She's downstairs and she's sad. So we're going to go buy a present to cheer her up," Callie explained as she helped Amelia put on her little purple jacket._

" _Okay. We buy candy?"_

_Callie smiled. "I suppose we could buy some candy for Mama too. That is sure to cheer her up huh?"_

" _For Amelia too?"_

_Callie laughed out loud. "Yes, we'll buy Amelia candy too. Only if you're a good girl though."_

" _I be good," Amelia stated proudly._

_It didn't take long for Callie to find what she was looking for. She just hoped she was doing the right thing and not digging herself further into the hole. "Okay, you wait out here with the present until I call you, okay?" she asked her daughter._

" _Okay."_

_Callie kissed her daughter on the cheek before turning to her bedroom door. With a soft knock, she pushed the door open to find her wife cuddled in bed. "Hey sweetheart. I'm sorry about earlier," she apologized._

" _No, you're just trying to take care of me and the baby. I overreacted."_

" _No, you didn't," Callie dismisses. "I do want to take care of you, but I don't want you to feel smothered either." Callie ran a hand through her wife's blonde hair gently. Arizona closed her eyes, soaking in the feeling. "Amelia and I got you a present. An apology of sorts. A compromise."_

_Arizona sat up at that. She loved presents, although what her wife could have possibly bought was a mystery. "What is it?"_

" _See for yourself. Amelia, bring the present sweetie," she called towards the door._

_Their two-year old walked into the room pulling a bag behind her. "Boodbag wit wheels, Mama," Amelia explained, having trouble with the hard 'k' sound in book._

" _I see that," Arizona smiled. She held her hand out for Amelia to transfer the handle so that she could pull it into her lap. The bag was pink and black with little hearts and stars all over it._

" _Now you can take care of your own books without me worrying about you," Callie told her._

_Arizona wasn't sure how she felt about pulling her bag behind her, but if it's what it took to make Callie feel better then she'd do it._

_A smile took over Amelia's face like a light bulb when off and she dashed out of the room. She came back in a minute later with a miniature version of Arizona's new backpack. "I got one just like yous."_

" _That's awesome, baby," Arizona told her daughter. She should have known Callie wouldn't have been able to leave the store without getting one for Amelia as well. Their daughter was Arizona's little shadow. She wanted to be just like her mama._

_Their toddler pulled on the zipper and opened the big pocket. She reached inside and pulled out a bunch of candy. "One for Mama," she said as she handed a Kit Kat to Arizona. "One for Mommy," she handed another to Callie. "Two for Amelia."_

" _How did Amelia get two?"_

" _Amelia was really good," the miniature Callie stated. Arizona just laughed out loud._

"You and your Robbins genes," Callie complained, pulling Arizona out of memory lane.

"What about my genes?"

"I wasn't sick like this with Amelia, so it must be your genes," Callie smirked. Now that she was done being sick for the day, she was back to being her playful self.

"And the fact that, that was 14 years ago and your body has changed a lot has nothing to do with it?" Arizona asked, not taking the bait.

"Nope. Not at all," Callie smirked. "Now get me off this yucky floor," she ordered.

Arizona rolled her eyes, but held her hand out and pulled Callie back into a standing position. Callie quickly brushed her teeth to get the yucky taste out of her mouth.

"You don't work today, and I don't work until tonight, so what do you want to do until then?" Arizona asked as they both wandered back into their bedroom.

"Personally, I just want to lay in bed all day."

"That sounds like a good idea to me," Arizona agreed. She stripped off her clothes and pulled on a large shirt of Callie's. She crawled into bed beside her wife and pulled her close. She placed a hand on Callie's belly in a protective hold. "Are you really that much sicker than with Amelia?" she asked with concern.

"A little bit," Callie admitted. "I was only sick for a couple weeks and then it just sort of went away."

"I'm sorry."

Callie tilted her head to look into Arizona's eyes. "You know I was kidding about the Robbins gene thing right?" Callie asked, afraid that Arizona had taken her a little too seriously.

"I know. But I'm still sorry. I hate seeing you so sick," Arizona admitted.

"I don't like it either. But in the end it's all worth it," Callie told her. "You know why?'

Arizona smiled. She knew where Callie was going with this. "Because in the end we get a baby." She'd told Callie the same thing when she was pregnant and puking every morning.

"We get a baby," Callie agreed.

They talked quietly for a little while, wondering aloud what this baby would be like. What it would be like to have a baby again. They were just deciding how to decorate the nursery when Callie let out a loud yawn.

"You sleepy, my love?" Arizona asked quietly, using a nickname she only usually used in the most intimate of moments.

"A little bit," Callie admitted.

"Well, let's take a nap then," Arizona decided. "We have plenty of time to make these decisions." She pulled Callie into her and rested the other girl's head on her shoulder. "Sleep now. You're growing a human being, you need the rest," she told her as she placed a kiss on her wife's forehead.

"Mmm kay," Callie mumbled and within minutes she was out like a light.

Arizona gently rubbed Callie's belly. "You be nice to your mommy?" she told the baby growing in her wife's womb. "Let her get some sleep." It didn't take long before Arizona too was sound asleep.


	23. Chapter 23

**Chapter 23**

With remote in hand, Arizona sat quietly on the couch flipping through channels. The girls were both upstairs doing their homework and her wife wasn't home yet, leaving Arizona to her own devices. She probably needed to start dinner soon, but she had a little time before she needed to worry about that. Now that Callie was getting further along in her pregnancy, Arizona was taking on more of the work around the house to give her a break.

When she found nothing on TV, she pulled up their Netflix and started searching through movies. "Awe, I love this movie," she grinned as she hit the select button. It was one she had watched with Callie several times when they were dating.

She was so engrossed in the film she didn't hear footsteps on the stairs. She was startled when a body plopped themselves down beside her. She turned in time to see Amelia sink back into the couch and place her arms around her stomach. "What are you watching?"

Arizona could tell that something was on her teens mind, but Amelia wasn't ready to talk just yet it seemed. Arizona turned back to the screen just in time to see a book being placed in front of Leyla. Arizona smiled as she remembered what came next. "It's called 'I Can't Think Straight.' It was a favorite of your mom's and mine while we were dating."

She teasingly covered Amelia's eyes when the scene in the hotel room appeared. She knew the scene in the movie was pretty tame to what you could see on TV these days, but she still liked to pretend her daughter was innocent.

Amelia smacked her mama's hand away and snuggled into her side. Arizona wrapped an arm around her daughter, pulling her in closer as Amelia laid her head on Arizona's chest. She leaned her head down and placed a kiss in the girl's dark hair.

The two of them watched in silence for the last few minutes of the movie. Once the credits began to roll, Arizona picked up the remote and flipped off the TV. She put the device back down and the table and wrapped her other arm around her daughter's front, pulling her in even further. "Ready to talk yet?"

Amelia sighed and tried to figure out where to even begin. There was so much on her mind and she wasn't sure where to even start.

Arizona ran a hand through her daughter's hair, loving the soft texture. "What's going on in that head of yours sweetheart?"

"A lot of stuff," Amelia admitted.

Arizona smiled and placed a kiss on her forehead. "How about this? Come into the kitchen and help me work on dinner. Maybe it'll help you organize your thoughts."

Amelia nodded and pulled out of her mama's arms. The two stood up together and headed towards the kitchen. Arizona started moving around the kitchen as she pulled out all the things they'd need for the planned meal. "Why don't you start peeling these potatoes while I cook the meat?"

Amelia nodded her head and pulled the garbage can up to one of the barstools where she began the task at hand. With something else to occupy her mind, it was easy to start talking. "I'm different."

"What do you mean?" Arizona asked.

"I'm not like Lex or the new baby."

Arizona threw a look over her shoulder to see her daughter's slumped shoulders. She had hoped their conversation several months ago would be enough to help Amelia understand, but apparently her daughter still had unanswered questions. "Is this about Joe?" she asked, wanting to be sure.

Amelia shrugged her shoulders. "Partly, I guess. I guess I just don't know where I fit in."

Arizona turned the burner down so that the hamburger didn't burn and walked around the island to hug Amelia. "Sweetheart, look at me," she ordered softly. She lifted Amelia's chin to look into her eyes. "You fit in right here," she placed a hand over her heart. "You are my daughter just as much as Alexia is. Nothing could ever change that, ever."

"But you and mom didn't plan me. And I have a dad who I don't even know except a name on some cards."

Arizona sighed and told Amelia to scoot the barstool around to the other side of the island. She moved the pan of potatoes over next to the stove and then moved the garbage can as well. This way she could easily see the girl as she finished cooking the meat. "I'm going to tell you something that not even your mom knows," she told her.

This got Amelia intrigued. Her moms never kept secrets from each other as far as she was aware. It was almost sickening how much they loved each other and shared everything. "What?"

"Well we told you how we sent Joe pictures and letters about you sometimes. We also talked to him on the phone sometimes too. But there's one conversation between me and him that I never told your mom about," Arizona started. She could remember the conversation so clearly at times.

"Shortly after Alexia was born, he called to wish us congratulations on the new baby. He and I got to talking," Arizona explained. "We had pretty much become friends over the years, so it was easy to be honest with him when he asked how we got pregnant with Alexia. I explained that we used my brother. He hung up shortly after that."

"Something more happened though right?" Amelia asked. So far it didn't seem like such a big deal that she'd kept it from her mom.

"You're right," Arizona told her. As she began her story she took the peeled potatoes from her daughter and sat them on the stove to cook.

_Arizona wandered around the quiet house alone. Her parents were out for the evening with some friends. Callie had taken Amelia out to do some shopping, so that left Arizona home with the two week old Alexia. Neither woman was comfortable taking the baby out of the house just yet._

_From a distance she heard her cell phone go off. Grateful for something to do and believing it was likely her wife she headed towards her bedroom and snatched up the phone. Callie's name wasn't the name that appeared on caller ID, however._

" _Joe. To what do I owe this pleasure?" she asked with a smile. She'd just talked to the man a few days ago. They weren't in the habit of talking more than once or twice every few months._

" _I've been doing a lot of thinking about our situation," Joe answered honestly._

_A sudden dread filled Arizona's stomach. She worried that he'd changed his mind. He wanted some form of custody of Amelia. She knew if he asked she'd never deny him the chance, but she hated the idea of sharing her daughter with anyone. "Oh?" she managed to choke out._

" _I've been thinking about how you told me you used your brother as a sperm donor. I think that's what I want to be."_

_Arizona took a deep breath as she tried to figure out what exactly he was saying. So far whatever it was didn't sound as bad as she'd first believed. "What do you mean?"_

" _Amelia has two parents. My opinion of that hasn't changed. And I don't regret signing away my rights. It was the right thing to do for all of us. But for the last couple years I've been trying to figure out what exactly my place is in all this. I've finally figured it out."_

"Potatoes are cooked. Now what?" Amelia asked, breaking Arizona out of her story.

Arizona dumped the water out of the pan and handed her daughter a giant fork. "Start smashing," she told her then picked up where she left off.

_Ok so far it was sounding really good to Arizona's ears, but she still couldn't figure out the need for this call. So far it sounded like just a restating of everyone's place in the life of the little girl they all loved._

" _I know you'll tell her about me someday. We both know she'll ask about her existence. And from the sounds of it, being the same as your brother sounds pretty good. I'm her sperm donor, but I'm also someone who cares for her like an uncle would."_

_Arizona smiled, now understanding. "Are you sure?"_

_Joe didn't answer immediately. He took a moment to really think this through one last time. "I'm sure. Amelia has never been mine. The first time I laid eyes on the two of you together I knew she was yours. I was just the instrument that made it possible for you to have her. But still I'd like her to know me, the same way your baby will know about your brother."_

" _I think that sounds like a good idea," Arizona told him, the smile evident in her voice. "You know we'd never keep you out of her life."_

" _I know. That's why this way is better."_

" _You're a good man, Joe."_

" _Don't you forget it," he told her with smiled before disconnecting the call._

Amelia listened to her mama's story with absolute focus. She kind of understood better now, but still needed more information. "So basically you could have just told me I had a different sperm donor and he would have been fine with it?"

"That's what he and I discussed, yes," Arizona answered.

"Why didn't you just say that then?"

Arizona drained the hamburger of grease and dumped it in the pan. As she mixed the sauce and vegetables in with it she looked at her daughter. "You mom and I agreed long ago that we would tell you the truth. And while we do believe now that Joe really is just the instrument we needed, you still needed to know the whole story."

"So you're saying I am the same as Lex and the baby, just different."

Arizona smiled. "I might not have been there for your conception like your sister and this new baby, but believe me, I was your mother the moment you were conceived. If I could go back and be there with your mom from that moment on I would. It kills me sometimes that I missed out on your first few months."

The blonde took the mashed potatoes from her daughter and began scooping them out into the pan on top of the meat and veggies. "Go get the cheese will ya?"

Amelia did as she was told and pulled the large bag of grated cheese out of the bag and began pouring large amounts over the potatoes. Shepard's Pie was better with loads of cheese in her opinion.

"Well I'm glad you found us eventually," Amelia said.

Arizona grabbed the bag and set it on the counter before her daughter could give them all heart failure or something with all that cheese. She wrapped her arms around the girl from behind, hugging her close. "Me too, kiddo. I love you so much. I hope you know that."

Amelia turned around in her mama's arms, wrapping her own around the woman's waist. "I do. I love you, too."

"What's going on in here?" Callie asked with a smile. Arizona and Callie were known for showering their daughters with lots of affection, but still it was surprising to come home and find mother and daughter hugging tightly.

"We were just fixing dinner," Arizona answered. If Amelia wanted to tell Callie of their conversation it was her place to do so. She wasn't going to spill the beans.

"Mama and I were just talking while we cooked," Amelia added. It didn't take a genius to figure out that Arizona was letting Amelia do the talking. "I don't think I'm ready to talk to Joe just yet. But maybe I could write him a letter?" she asked.

Callie threw a look Arizona's way. Suddenly she was very interested in this conversation she'd missed out on. Silently she asked if everything was okay. Arizona just gave her a nod in return, easing her fears. "If that's what you want to do, then that's what you should do," Callie answered. "We haven't talked to him for a few months. I'm sure he'd love to know what's going on in our lives." She subconsciously ran a hand over her stomach, a move that didn't go unnoticed by either Arizona or Amelia.

Amelia moved to her mother and wrapped her arms around her. "Thank you, mom. I love you."

"I love you, too," Callie grinned, hugging her daughter tightly.

While Callie and Amelia spoke quietly for a few moments, Arizona turned back to their dinner and placed the pan in oven to cook for a little while. After that was done she began rinsing all the dishes they'd used to cook and pile them into the dishwasher.

Just as she put the last dish down, she felt arms wrap around her from behind. "Hey, beautiful," Arizona greeted. She turned her head to look over her shoulders so they could share a kiss.

"You're the beautiful one," Callie spoke when the kiss ended.

Arizona pulled out of her wife's arms and turned around. She placed a hand on Callie's barely there bump and kissed her again. "You're carrying my child. Nothing is more beautiful than that," she whispered. "I love you."

"I love you, too," Callie smiled. "Now, what exactly were you two talking about?"

"She just had a few more questions, that's all," Arizona answered easily. She wasn't going to go into detail. Callie didn't need to know unless Amelia decided to tell her. "Nothing to worry about, I promise."

Callie searched Arizona's eyes, finding the truth in them. She breathed a sigh of relief. She knew if there was something to worry about then Arizona wouldn't hesitate to tell her. But since she wasn't, she'd have to work on getting Amelia to tell her.

"Now, dinner is almost ready. What say you and I go do some cuddling on the couch, maybe some making out until the oven beeps?" Arizona whispered.

"Deal!" Callie yelled, tugging Arizona out of the room.


	24. Chapter 24

**Chapter 24**

With grocery bags in hand, Arizona pushed her way through the garage door into the kitchen. She dropped them down on the counter with a loud plop. "Girls!" she yelled as she began pulling things out of the bags to put them away. She was hoping at least one of her children would respond to her call. It wasn't long before she heard feet bounding down the stairs.

"What do you need, Mama?" Amelia asked as she entered the room.

"Will you finish getting the bags out of the car while I get this cold stuff put away?"

"Sure thing," Amelia smiled.

Arizona looked up at her daughter and returned her smile. She had good kids and she was damn proud of that fact. Alexia appeared a minute later. The relaxed look in the girl's eyes told her that her youngest had been reading as usual. "Help me put this stuff away?" she asked softly.

Alexia nodded her head and began going through one of the bags on the counter, pulling things out to put away.

"Where's mom?" Arizona asked.

Lex closed the freezer before turning back to her mother to answer. "Last I saw she was sound asleep on the couch."

Arizona nodded her head in understanding. Callie had been sleeping more and more as her pregnancy progressed. She knew it was normal, but she couldn't help but worry just a little bit every time she found her wife passed out.

"That's the last of them," Amelia announced as she dropped the last couple of bags down in front of her mother and sister. She didn't even need to be asked, she automatically opened one of the bags and grabbed a handful of cans to put away in the pantry.

"You two finish this up while I start dinner," Arizona told them, more of a soft request than anything. Both girls nodded their heads. Arizona kissed them both on the back of the head before she pulled out a couple pans and set them on the stove. Next she went into the pantry to pull out the noodles.

Spaghetti was probably the one meal Arizona could make easily. Not that she was totally inept in the kitchen, but she was nowhere near the talent her wife was. She tried, but whenever she went for one of the complex meals Callie could pop out, she always managed to mess something up. She'd decided to stick to the meals she already knew.

Once all the groceries were put away, Amelia stepped in to help her mama with dinner while Alexia set the table. Both girls had grown up a lot over the last few weeks. They had taken more responsibility on themselves to help their mothers out.

"Arizona!" Callie's voice called from the other room. She didn't sound in distress, but it still made Arizona's heart rate increase. She made sure her girls were okay keeping an eye on the food before dashing into the other room.

"What is it?" she asked quickly. Her eyes barely processed the small smile on Callie's face as she held a hand on her belly.

"Come here," Callie beckoned with her free hand. She grabbed Arizona's as soon as she was within reach and placed it on her bump where hers had been. "The baby is really active."

Arizona let out a wide grin as she felt all the movement under her hand. She sat down beside Callie and placed both hands on her wife's stomach. "Oh my," she let out. Their baby was certainly trying it's hardest to make its presence known.

Callie watched the look of wonder on her wife's face with a smile. She'd been on both sides of feeling a baby kick and knew just how it felt to be on Arizona's end right now. It was amazing no matter what to know there was a baby in there.

A thought popped into Callie's head. She'd been thinking about it earlier that day but wasn't sure if she should bring it up or not. But now, in this moment, she knew. "There's something I want to talk to you about," she started.

Arizona snapped her head up to look into Callie's eyes. She tried to gauge what was awaiting her inside her love's head but she couldn't. "What is it?"

"Mama, I think dinner is ready," Amelia called as she popped her head in through the doorway.

Arizona sighed. She'd forgotten for those few moments that she left the girls in the kitchen. "Alright. We'll be there in a minute."

Callie smiled and placed a quick kiss on Arizona's lips. "It's alright. We'll talk about it later. It isn't a huge deal anyway. Or at least I don't think so," she reassured.

Arizona studied Callie for a moment, but decided to believe her wife. She stood up and held a hand out for the other woman to take. She helped Callie to her feet, knowing this was only the beginning and there was still months ahead of them where she'd need to help out and she looked forward to all of them. The two of them walked hand-in-hand to the kitchen and took their usual seats.

They didn't always get nights like this, with all four of them surrounding the table. More often than they would like one or the other seemed to get stuck at work. Because of that, the two women never took for granted their time together as a family.

"So how was school today?" Arizona asked before taking a bite of French bread.

The two girls overlapped each other as they both filled their mothers in on their day. Both were pretty good students but Amelia seemed to struggle just a bit in her math class. Arizona promised to help her a bit with her homework after dinner. She only hoped she could remember enough to actually help her daughter.

The group finished soon after and Lex and Callie worked on cleaning up while Amelia led Arizona upstairs to finish the girl's homework.

"You okay sweetie?" Callie asked Alexia as they worked together to rinse the dishes and load them in the dishwasher. Their youngest was always a quiet one, but she seemed to be even more so lately.

Alexia sighed and turned her back to the counter, leaning on it. "Yeah, I'm fine," she said softly.

Callie added the soap to the dishwasher and shut the door. She flipped it on and made sure it was going before she moved to stand beside her daughter. She wrapped an arm around the girl, leading her into the other room. The two crashed down onto the couch, with Lex tucked into her mother. "Doesn't seem like fine to me."

She was probably too old to sit in her mother's lap anymore anyway, but with her mother's distended stomach she didn't dare to anymore. She missed it. That had always been her spot from the time she was born. "Everything is just different now," she sighed sadly.

Callie had seen the brief glance to her lap and knew a little bit where Alexia's head was at. She wasn't the baby anymore and that was becoming more and more evident to the young girl. "I'm sorry, sweetie. Maybe Mama and I should have talked to you two about the new baby a long time ago. It was one of those situations where you can't ever really know what to do as a parent," she admitted honestly.

Alexia nodded and pushed her face into Callie's side. She wasn't entirely sure what she felt. On one hand she was excited about the new baby. She wanted to be a big sister, but at the same time she didn't want to stop being the baby.

Callie wrapped her arms tighter around her daughter. She was surprised it had taken this long to get a reaction out of Alexia. She'd always been a mommy's girl and Callie had known a reaction was coming eventually. "I'm not replacing you, you know. You're still my girl," Callie told her. She knew a big root of the problem was that she was a mommy's girl, and mommy was having a baby. "Maybe you can't sit on my lap anymore like you used to, but you can still snuggle with me, just like we are right now. I never want to give up my Lex snuggles." She really hoped her daughter would never decide she was too old for them either.

"I know," Lex mumbled. "But I won't be the baby anymore."

"That's true. But you'll have a new little sister, or brother, to teach things too. I think you'll be an awesome big sister."

Alexia pulled away and looked up at her mother. "Really? You think so."

Callie smiled and placed a kiss on her daughter's nose. "I know so," she told her with confidence. "You're so good with JoJo and with Nicky. They love spending time with you."

Alexia smiled, knowing it was the truth. She loved that JoJo would follow her around when he visited. He idolized both of his older cousins. And Nicky was always soaking up anything he could learn from them. "Yeah they do," she agreed.

Callie leaned in closer to her daughter so she could talk a little quieter. What she said next she didn't want her wife to overhear. "Plus, with a new baby to steal some attention away from your Mama, you and Amelia will finally get a little more freedom," she told her. Arizona was definitely the more protective of the two. "I'm already working on her to try and get you more than a couple of hours on your own," Callie admitted.

Arizona was finally allowing their girls to be home alone, but if neither parent was going to make it home within two hours they were to go to their grandparents' house, or check in if they were at a friend's. Callie still wanted them to check in with someone if they were with friends, but with the elder Robbins right next door, she didn't see the harm in letting them add on a couple more hours at this point. They were doing well by themselves. Their grades were still as high as before so getting their homework done wasn't a problem.

"Awesome!" Lex shouted.

"What's awesome?" Arizona asked as she came down the stairs and towards the living room.

"Nothing," Callie quickly answered. She shot Alexia a look to keep her mouth shut. Luckily for both of them, Arizona didn't see it.

Arizona knew there was something going on but chose to ignore it. "Time for bed, munchkin," she told her daughter instead.

Alexia gave both her mothers a hug and a kiss before heading upstairs to get ready for bed. "Goodnight," she called halfway up the stairs.

"Night!" both mothers yelled back.

Arizona took her daughter's place and snuggled into Callie's side. She slid a hand under her wife's shirt and laid it on her belly in hopes that she'd feel her child moving again. It wasn't long before she felt the small flutters across the tan skin. "So what was it you wanted to talk about?" she asked. The interrupted conversation had been on her mind all evening.

"I've been thinking," Callie started. "I know we wanted to be surprised with Lex and I did the same with Amelia. With this baby though, I think I want to find out the sex at our appointment tomorrow."

Arizona looked up at her wife. She'd do anything to make the other woman happy. She liked being surprised, but she could probably be okay with knowing. It wasn't hard for either of them to read an ultrasound anyway, both of them being doctors this time around. "How come?" she asked, waiting to know the reasoning behind it.

"I don't know. I just feel like it's the right way to do it this time around. As much as I love the surprise, I hate referring to it as 'the baby.' And maybe we could pick a name out sooner rather than later," Callie admitted.

Arizona nodded her head. She could understand where Callie was coming from. It might be nice to get excited about a specific baby instead of some abstract one. And they could decorate the nursery with a theme instead of just neutral colors.

"We still have a lot of things from when Amelia and Alexia were babies. But if it's a boy, there are other things we might want to get," Callie added.

"Very true," Arizona agreed. She leaned in and pressed a kiss to Callie's cheek and then her lips. "Let's find out."

"Really?" Callie was pretty sure she was going to have to do more work than that to convince her wife.

"Yes, really," Arizona answered. "Now let's go up to bed," she whispered. "I want to spend a little alone time with my very sexy wife."

Callie liked the sound of that.

**~CA~**

Callie sat on the exam table, impatiently swinging her feet.

"Are you sure we shouldn't just go ahead without her?" Dr. Walsh asked.

"Nope, she'll be here," Callie quickly denied. Arizona was already 20 minutes late for their appointment, but she wasn't about to do this without her. They had celebrated for several hours their decision to find out the sex of the baby and she wasn't going to do it without her. She knew the other woman had gotten pulled into an emergency surgery, but Arizona always made their appointments.

"Alright. Let me go take care of one of my other patients and then I'll come back to check in with you." Soon after Callie was left alone in the room.

"Come on, Arizona," Callie mumbled to herself, checking both her phone and pager for any news from her wife. With no news still, she laid back on the table, the paper cover under her crinkling as she did so. She pulled up her current game of Sudoku on her phone and went back to work filling the squares in.

"Sorry, sorry. I came as quick as I could," Arizona spoke as she flew into the room. Her hair was still tucked up in her scrub cap and her scrubs were hidden beneath her surgical gown.

"I see that," Callie smirked.

Arizona looked down and realized she was still wearing the gown and cap and began taking them off. She'd rather be in street clothes for their appointments, but today that simply wasn't an option. Her scrubs would have to do. "Where's Dr. Walsh?" she asked.

"She'll be back. I wanted to wait for you, so she moved onto her next patient."

"Alright," Arizona sighed, glad she hadn't missed anything. She stepped up to her wife and gave her a kiss in greeting. "Hi."

"Hi, yourself."

They were about to kiss again when the door flew open. "We ready now ladies?"

"Definitely," Arizona answered. She helped Callie get comfortable on the table and pulled her shirt up exposing her protruding belly.

A few minutes later the sound of the baby's heartbeat filled the room. "Good size. Everything looks normal. Do you want to know the sex?"

Both woman looked at the screen. They were pretty sure they could both telling what they were having, but they looked at the doctor with expectant faces. "Yes, we do," Callie answered for them.

"Well, looks like you're having…"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: I know I'm cruel for leaving it there. But I promise you'll know with the next chapter.
> 
> I know I've been updating every two weeks instead of every week and it looks like that's how it may stay for the rest of this story. However I'm also not sure when I'll get the next chapter up. I'm going on overnights at work for two weeks so my whole schedule will be out of whack. I promise to try though.


	25. Chapter 25

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the long delay. I really did try to get a chapter up sooner but my work schedule the last two weeks wore me out. But here it is, finally the answer you all have been waiting for.

**Chapter 25**

It was a Saturday night and all the Robbins and Torres' were huddled around a table at Olive Garden. Ten people in all, including Aria and Nicky. Callie and Arizona wished Tim and his family could be there as well, but they had already decided to call him later.

They'd decided to gather the family together to make a little bit of an announcement. They'd ignored all the questioning faces as one by one their family filed in and took a seat at the table they'd reserved earlier, not wanting to have to wait to be seated. They wanted to hold off a little longer and enjoy the torture their family was likely feeling in anticipation.

"What do you want, girls?" Arizona asked their daughters as she perused the menu.

"Just spaghetti," Amelia answered and closed her menu. Both Arizona and Callie smiled and shared that look like they knew that was going to be her answer.

"Can I have pizza?" Lex asked excitedly. She laid the menu down on the table and pointed out the one she wanted.

Arizona had to admit the Chicken Alfredo pizza did look delicious. She didn't dare order it for herself in front of her parents and in-laws, however. "Of course you can, sweetie." She leaned over so that she was level with Alexia's ear. "But you gotta share a bite with me." Lex nodded her head with a smile.

"I want pizza too!" Nicky yelled.

Aria gave him a look and signaled for him to quiet down. She took his kids menu out of his hands and saw there was pizza listed on the kids menu. She was glad he had found something so easily. Her son could be quite picky when he wanted to be. "Sure that's what you want?" she asked.

"Yep!"

"Alright then," she laughed before turning back to her own menu to browse.

"Know what you're going to get?" Arizona asked Callie.

"Well I really want seafood, but your child isn't liking that idea," Callie said quietly and ran her hand along her slowly growing belly. "The baby is really wanting chicken," she continued. "I've narrowed it down to the Smoked Mozzarella Chicken or the Lasagna Primavera with Grilled Chicken."

"Ooh both those sound good," Arizona responded, mouthwatering at the sound of it. "How about you get one and I'll get the other and we'll split them?"

Callie leaned over and placed a kiss smack on her wife's lips. No one else even batted an eye. After all these years of being around the couple they were more than used to it. "Have I told you lately how much I love you?" Callie whispered. It wasn't even that big of a thing, but with Callie's current mood swings it meant the world to her to not have to make a choice.

A few minutes later their water came back and they all put in their orders. The family chatted idly as they all waited for their food, each of them taking a turn to pointed stare at the couple that had drug them there. Neither woman seemed willing to talk.

"Are you going to tell us yet?" Aria asked, annoyed, once their plates were sitting in front of them.

"Nope, eat your food," Callie smirked at her and dug into her own plate. Every few minutes her fork would wander over to Arizona's lasagna and take a bite.

"Alright. What's the big announcement? We already know you're pregnant," Aria tried again after the two woman had pushed their plates away and declared themselves full.

Callie and Arizona shared a look, asking if they were ready to tell everyone the news. Both gave a slight nod indicating they were ready. "We do have an announcement about the pregnancy," Callie started off cryptically.

"Is it twins?" Barbara asked excitedly.

Arizona shook her head at the question, hoping her mother didn't take it to hard that it wasn't. "No, not twins," she then said out loud. Callie gave her a look, telling her to continue. Instead of speaking, she bent down and pulled a small package out of her purse and handed it to the girls to open. They had discussed this previously and didn't want one parent to feel left out, so they left it to their daughters.

Amelia and Alexia worked quickly and pulled off the paper to find a box inside. Opening it up they pulled out a small, green onesie. They both read it and then turned it so the rest of the table could read it. In red and blue lettering it stated, "I'm the Little Brother."

"It's a boy?" Daniel asked.

"Yes. Come November we will be welcoming a little boy into our family," Callie announced happily.

"What made you change your minds about finding out?" This came from Barbara. She'd talked with both girls previously about their decision to be surprised, so she couldn't help but wonder what had changed.

"The girls were both surprises and that was great, but this time it just didn't feel the same," Callie started to explain. "One day I just had this need to know so that we could stop calling it 'the baby' all the time."

"And in all honesty, we're both doctors now. We know how to read an ultrasound so it probably wouldn't have stayed a surprise anyway," Arizona added.

"But you're sure it's a boy? I mean don't those things get read wrong sometimes, like a hand in the way or something," Lucia finally joined the conversation.

Callie smiled, thinking back to their ultrasound just a few short days ago. "We were pretty sure to begin with, but then just before we finished up he decided to move around a little bit and there was no doubt he was a boy," she told them all with a grin.

Carlos and Daniel exchanged a look, one that clearly showed how happy they were to have another grandson. They both doted on their granddaughters, but at heart they were still men who wanted that bond with a grandson. Carlos was only getting to know Nicky, but already thought of him as one of his own. Daniel on the other hand rarely got to see JoJo so it would be nice to have a little buddy that was nearby.

"Oh my goodness, we have so much to do," Barbara stated. She pulled out her phone and started looking through the calendar. After that she pulled out a little notebook from her purse as well as a pen. "We need to go shopping and set up the nursery. Daniel you need to get the crib out of the attic again so we have one at our house."

"We still have four months," her husband pointed out.

"Four months, that's all. So much to do."

Callie and Arizona both watched Barbara not sure what to do. If they should stop her rambling or not. The woman seemed to be in a world of her own as she jotted various things down.

"He will need a new crib, of course, for your house," Barbara said without even looking up for confirmation.

"We still have Amelia's old one at my parent's house I'm sure," Callie pointed out.

Barbara looked up at them then, the argument already in her eyes. "No, no. I'm sure they'll want that one to stay there for when their grandson comes to visit." She looked at both Torres' and got a nod from them in agreement.

"Alright fine, we'll get a new crib," Callie relented, throwing her hands up in the air.

"I know, we need to have a baby shower!"

"Mom, we don't need a baby shower," Arizona quickly threw out. Her mother had insisted on throwing one when Arizona had been pregnant and they had relented because she wasn't going to take no for an answer anyway. "You've already thrown us one, we don't need another one."

"That was almost 12 years ago when you were pregnant with Alexia. I haven't got to throw one for Callie and my grandson, so we're doing it."

Callie and Arizona both groaned and leaned back in their chairs in defeat. Aria watched her sister and sister-in-law with a smile. She always enjoyed the dynamic between the two young women and Barbara. The woman never ceased treating them like the girls they'd been in high school it seemed.

"Fine," Arizona finally sighed.

"Lucia, you up for some planning?" Barbara asked.

"I would love to help," Lucia smiled.

Arizona could already tell that it was going to be a long four months.

**~CA~**

More than an hour later the family of four finally made it home. Arizona was starting to wonder if they'd ever make it out of the restaurant alive. The two young girls had long since grown bored of watching their grandmother plan the shower.

And as for Callie, her back was aching from sitting in those chairs for so long. She reached a hand around behind her and began to rub the aching spot. A move that didn't go unnoticed by her wife.

"Why don't you go up and take a hot bath. I'll get the girls settled for the night and meet you up there," Arizona told Callie as she placed a soft kiss on her cheek. She ran a hand along the other woman's belly before sending her on her way upstairs.

After Callie was long gone, Arizona turned back to her daughters. "Alright girls. You can do whatever you want so long as you do it quietly and in your bedrooms. Lights out at 11 o'clock. I mean it," she told them both with a finger pointing at each of them. "Don't forget Aria is picking you both up bright and early."

Both girls silently agreed and made their way up the stairs, followed by their blonde mother. Originally all six of them were going to spend the day at the zoo together. Nicky hadn't been yet and they thought it would be a nice little thing to enjoy together.

That changed tonight with Barbara's over-excitement. Callie and Arizona had decided the more they got done on the other woman's list, the sooner they could get back to just enjoying their growing family. Aria had volunteered to still take the girls to get them out of everyone's hair. She figured her son would enjoy the trip more with his cousin's along for the ride anyway.

"Love you both," Arizona called out as the two girls went quietly into their bedrooms with a muffled "love you, too."

When she found her bedroom empty, the blonde took it as a good sign that Callie had done as she suggested. She remembered all too well how easy it was to grow uncomfortable quickly and how much baths seemed to help her.

The scent of lavender hit her senses as she opened the door to the bathroom. The bubbles in the bath suggested her wife had added some Dr. Teal's Foaming Bath to the water. A favorite of both of theirs to help them relax.

Callie's head was on the back of the tub with her eyes closed. Arizona thought for a moment she was sleeping, but then a smile lit the other woman's face and she knew Callie was now aware of her presence.

Stripping off her clothes quickly, Arizona pushed on Callie's shoulder so that she would move forward. Arizona climbed in behind her wife and wrapped her arms around her love so that she was relaxed against her. Her hands rested gently just above their son. "I love this," she whispered quietly, not wanting to ruin the mood.

"Me, too," Callie agreed. Her eyes closed again and she curled as close to Arizona as she possibly could. "He likes it too." She took her wife's right hand and moved it down her belly so she could feel the small little kicks.

"I can't believe it. We actually got a little boy. We're going to have a son," Arizona exclaimed excitedly. The evidence of her son was there just below her palm. "I would have been just as excited about a girl, but this is what we wanted."

"I know. It's going to be different having one."

"For sure. Remember when Tim told us about the first time he changed JoJo's diaper?" Arizona asked, the laughter already evident in her voice. Tim hadn't put the new diaper on fast enough and his son decided it was a good time to pee again.

Callie let out a chuckle at the memory. "Oh man. I remember. At least it only got on Tim's shirt. Could have been worse." One of the nurses on Callie's staff had relayed the story of when her own infant son and managed to hit her in the face.

"Quick diaper changes is going to be needed. It's a good thing we've had plenty of practice," Arizona smiled.

As the water grew cooler, the two women chatted about the change their son would bring to their lives. When the temperature finally became too cold, Arizona hoped out and helped Callie out of the tub. They dried off quietly and changed into light pajamas before crawling into bed.

"Let's hope your mother doesn't go to overboard tomorrow," Callie said as Arizona moved to flip off the light.

"We can hope, but I'm pretty much doubting it," Arizona responded. She flipped the light off and turned to pull Callie into her arms. Laying in the dark, curled together, was another of Arizona's favorite things to do.

"Yeah, me too," Callie agreed. Time had probably lessened the memory because neither woman remembered Barbara acting like this when Arizona had been pregnant, but they knew she probably had. And with Lucia around this time it was only going to get worse. "I'm glad my mom agreed to help, though."

"Me too. She's come a long way and I think Mom will help her feel included this time around."

"I can only imagine what tomorrow is going to be like with those two," Callie thought aloud. It was going to be a long day indeed.


	26. Chapter 26

**Chapter 26**

Arizona exited her patient's room with a laugh thrown over her shoulder at the little girl and the story about her dog. She'd had a really good day so far. All her patients were doing well. She was only scheduled for one more surgery later that day and she was confident they'd run into no complications. All in all it was a day doctors wished they had more of.

She walked over to the nurse's desk and dropped the patient chart down. She flipped it open and began adding in a few notes of instruction for the night nurses. When she was done she closed it again and then added it to the pile on the desk.

"Hey, Arizona. How's Callie doing?" One of the Peds nurses, Jen, asked as she moved to walk away.

Arizona smiled and turned back to the other woman. She liked Jen, not only as a nurse, but as a person as well. "She's doing really great. The baby is doing well and right on schedule. I can't wait," Arizona all but squealed. "We just passed the six month mark."

"That's great. Do you know if it's a boy or a girl?"

Arizona couldn't stop the grin if she wanted too. All it took was mere mention of her son to make her dimples pop proudly. "It's a little boy. We're so excited."

"That's awesome," Jen told her with a smile. "Are your girls excited too?"

Arizona paused for a moment. "They are getting there. It's brought up a lot of questions for them, but I think they are going to fall in love with him as soon as he is born."

"That's good. My partner and I are the opposite. We have a little boy and we're hoping for a girl this time."

"Awe, how old is your little boy?" Arizona asked, anything to keep her from gaping at the other woman. She realized she didn't know Jen as well as she thought she did.

"Jake is five and a terror. Beth claims he's just like me but I'm not so sure about that," Jen smirked. Arizona could see the mischief hidden within the brunette's hazel eyes.

"So are you pregnant or…?" Arizona asked, honestly curious.

"No, no. I um…," she hesitated. "I can't get pregnant. Perks of being a lesbian I guess."

Arizona nodded, feeling bad for the other woman. She wondered for a moment how it would be for Callie to have all their babies. She knew it wouldn't change how she felt about any of her kids. She loved them all equally, but she'd enjoyed being pregnant and getting to really feel the miracle of life. "Yeah," she answered lamely. She wasn't really sure what else she could say.

"Your son sounds like he'd get along well with my nephew," Arizona said, changing the subject. "Nicky's a little older, just turned six, but he's chalked full of energy."

"Sounds like Jake. Nicky, is he the one that was in here last year?"

Arizona nodded. They hadn't exactly announced to the whole hospital that their young patient was related to them. But anyone with eyes could see how much the boy's mother looked like Callie. "Yeah, that was a bit of a long story. Long lost family and all that."

"I see," Jen nodded her head. "Well maybe you'll have to tell me about it someday. Sure would beat the rumor mill."

Arizona was about to respond when her pager suddenly went off. "Shoot sorry, 911."

"Go," Jen told her with a shooing motion.

Arizona nodded and took off down the hallway. She hadn't lied when she said it was a 911, but all it gave her was a room number on the ortho floor. She really hoped there wasn't something wrong with her wife.

She hit the button for the elevator several times, trying to get it to move faster. Of course that didn't work and she grew even more impatient. As soon as she was off the thing she was flying down the hallway again.

Her shoes slid just a bit as she tried to stop in front of the right room. Hands flew out trying to steady herself. Once she was standing again, she turned the knob on the door and stepped into the darkened room. "Callie?" she asked quietly.

A step further into the room and the door closed behind her. Before she knew what was happening, she was shoved up against the door and lips were on her own. If the lips themselves weren't so familiar to her, the protruding belly pushing up against her let her knew exactly who was kissing her so fiercely.

She brought her hands up and cupped Callie's head, deepening the kiss. A moan filled the room but she couldn't be sure whose it was. It didn't matter though, all the mattered was the feeling of her lover in her hands.

Callie pulled back, but only for a moment, long enough to make sure the door was locked. As soon as that was done, she attacked Arizona's mouth again, this time pulling her further into the room as she did so.

"Callie, what…" Arizona started to ask as Callie pushed her down onto the bed.

"Shh," Callie whispered and placed a finger on Arizona's lips. "No talking." She pushed Arizona to lay down on the bed.

Arizona followed Callie's quiet commands easily. Once she was laying down on the bed, she turned on her side and moved closer to the wall. Callie laid down beside her wife so they were face-to-face before she initiated another kiss. This one was softer but still filled with as much passion.

Arizona cupped Callie's face again and pulled away for a moment. She studied the other woman's eyes for a moment in the dim light. It wasn't like Callie to be this aggressive. Not to say she didn't like it, it just wasn't their normal. "Callie?" she whispered.

"It's the stupid hormones," Callie finally admitted quietly. "I'm just so damn horny and it's driving me crazy."

Arizona smiled and kissed Callie softly. "Well, we can't have that." She tugged at her wife's blue scrub top and tossed it off the bed. Next Callie's bra came off and Arizona's mouth was quickly covering a full breast. She was really loving Callie's pregnant body. Not that her wife wasn't gorgeous, but there was just something about her now that really got the blonde going.

Callie's back arched as she released a moan of pleasure. Arizona's lips felt like heaven on her right now and the hand clutching the other breast wasn't so bad either. If she died right then she would go happily. "Arizona," she moaned.

The younger woman pulled away for a moment to rid herself of her own top. As she did so she prayed to whoever was listening that no one paged them anytime soon. Her surgery wasn't for an hour so she had plenty of time if people left them alone.

Once her chest was bare, she curled up to Callie again, kissing her lips passionately. "I love you, so much," she whispered between kisses. She hadn't been able to show it much lately, so she was going to take advantage now.

Her hand moved down over the bulging belly, taking a moment to gently rub where her son rested before slipping under the elastic waistband of blue scrub pants. She could feel the heat long before she reached where Callie needed her most.

She slid two fingers inside her wife easily, attaching her lips to Callie's breasts once again. After all these years she knew Callie's body better than her own. She knew the places to touch, the places to kiss and when to do them to bring out the most pleasure.

"Please Arizona. Need more," Callie panted.

Arizona smiled, knowing exactly what the other woman was asking for. Pulling her hand back out of Callie's pants, she helped her pull them off, quickly followed by her panties. Callie turned on her back, sliding more fully on the bed. Arizona kissed her way down golden skin, ending right where Callie needed her to be.

As soon as Arizona's tongue touched Callie, she was tumbling over the edge. Arizona teased her in such a way to extend the pleasure, making Callie feel like she was flying and then she was free. It was several minutes before Callie came down from her high and caught her breath. She opened her eyes to find Arizona lying next to her, staring down at her.

"Welcome back," Arizona smirked. "Better now?"

"Much," Callie smiled back. "That was just what I needed."

"Glad to be of service," the blonde teased. She watched as her wife let out a big yawn. "Someone is sleepy now, huh?"

"Don't make fun of me," Callie pouted. Arizona placed a kiss on her forehead pulled Callie into her. The pregnant woman curled into her wife, loving the skin on skin contact. It was a comfort to her in times like these.

"Take a nap sweetheart," Arizona whispered, wrapping her arms tightly around Callie. "I have a little while before I need to be in surgery."

Callie nodded her head and was quickly asleep. Arizona laid there holding her wife for a half hour, running her hands through dark locks. She waited until she was sure Callie was asleep before moving so her head was next to Callie's stomach.

"Hey, baby boy. It's your Mama," she started. "You're such a good boy. We're so excited to meet you. Your Mommy and I both can't wait to hold you. Your sisters are going to love you too.

"You be a good boy for Mommy though, okay? Take care of her and don't let her tire herself out to much," she whispered. She worried so much about that very thing. Her wife was an overachiever by nature. She just hoped Callie would not push herself too far before their baby arrived.

**~CA~**

" _Callie," Arizona yelled from their bedroom. "Callie!"_

_Callie dropped the juice she was pouring herself and ran into the other room. "What? What is it?"_

" _I think it's time. I think my water just broke," Arizona told her. She threw back the covers to show how wet she was._

" _Okay, don't panic," Callie said more to herself than to her wife. "Just um, hold on a minute." She turned and ran for the stairs. She thought she'd be more prepared having had a baby before, but was now finding it was a totally different experience when it was her wife and she was trying not to panic. "Barbara!" she yelled through the house._

" _What is it?" Barbara asked, coming in from the living room._

" _It's time."_

_Barbara smiled at that. She could see the emotion in her daughter-in-laws eyes. She'd seen the same look in Daniels during her pregnancies. "Alright. Stay calm. Let's get down there," she said and moved around Callie to head down the stairs._

_The two woman helped Arizona change into dry clothes. Callie made sure their bag was packed with everything they'd need for the next few days. "Oh what about Amelia? She's napping."_

" _Don't you worry. It'll be hours yet. I'll stay here with her and when she wakes up we'll head to the hospital." They knew it was going to be hard to entertain a three-year-old at the hospital anyway but they didn't want her to be left out. And Barbara wanted to be there as well._

_Arizona leaned heavily on Callie as they made their way up the stairs and out the side door. She opened the door for her wife and helped her into the passenger seat. "We'll be at the hospital soon," she promised._

_By the time they'd filled out all the paperwork and got settled in a room Barbara wasn't far behind them with a still half-asleep little girl. "Look baby," she whispered to the little girl as they entered Arizona's room. "Look who it is."_

" _Mama, Mommy," Amelia smiled and reached out for either of them to take her. Callie quickly obliged and placed her daughter on her hip. She took a seat on Arizona's bed so that they little girl could be with both her mommies._

" _She was full of questions when she woke up and you weren't there," Barbara explained._

" _Sorry baby," Arizona smiled at her daughter. "Remember when we talked about the baby in Mama's tummy?" Amelia nodded her head. "Well baby has decided it's time to meet us."_

" _Baby coming?"_

_Callie wrapped her arms tighter around her daughter. "You're about to be a big sister."_

" _Yay."_

_Daniel and Carlos both came straight to the hospital after work. The two mothers were grateful they took their granddaughter and entertained her in the hours of labor. This allowed Barbara to be in the delivery room with her daughter._

_After what felt like hours and screaming and pushing, Alexia Sofia Robbins finally came screaming into the world. They'd chosen the name Alexia for a girl and Alexander for a boy months earlier. Looking at their baby girl, they'd chosen right. Alexia was almost a replica of her sister, but some of the Robbins genes shown through._

_They were now a family of four and they couldn't be happier._


	27. Chapter 27

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Starting next week my work schedule changes and I'll now have Thursday and Friday off. So I'll probably be updating on Thursdays or maybe Fridays from now on.
> 
> I'm excited about this because when the new season starts I won't have to wait until after work to watch Grey's! I'll get to watch it live!

**Chapter 27**

With the hordes of people all about the room, Callie was grateful that Lucia and Barbara had decided to hold the baby shower at her parent's house. There was no way all these people would have been able to fit into either of the Robbins' homes. What was even more shocking was some of the guests that had shown up. Family and friends that neither she nor Arizona had seen for years.

Nothing terribly exciting had happened yet, as the shower had only been scheduled to start a half hour before. People were still trickling in, but the expectant mother couldn't imagine who still hadn't shown up.

"Oh my goodness. Look at you!" Callie's aunt Fernanda squealed. "You're so big, but still so beautiful. Come here sweetie and give me a hug."

Callie smiled as she moved to stand up. It was an action that was easier said than done these days. She managed to get to her feet and awkwardly hug her aunt. "It's good to see you," Callie greeted as the two pulled apart.

"You too, girl. You and that wife of yours seem to keep yourselves hidden these days," Fernanda teased.

"We're busy girls," Callie responded, not taking the bait.

"I know you are," the older woman said seriously. "I'm so proud of the both of you. And so excited about this little one," she added as she placed a hand on Callie's belly. "Definitely a boy in there." Fernanda smiled thinking of her own grown sons.

"Oh yeah, definitely," Callie agreed. This pregnancy had been quite a bit different from her own with Amelia and she believed a lot of that had to do with it being a boy. He seemed to respond to things different than Amelia had. And he _loved_ Arizona's voice. She had a feeling they'd have another Mama's kid on their hands.

"Where is that wife of yours?" Fernanda ask when she realized the blonde wasn't anywhere in sight. It was quite unusual, especially after hearing from Lucia how protective Arizona had been of Callie during this pregnancy.

"She had to run to the hospital for a little bit. She should be on her way here soon though." She'd already had to answer this question several times. She really hoped Arizona would get here soon so people would stop asking. As a doctor she understood why her wife needed to go in. If it was one of her patients that needed her, she'd be there in a heartbeat. "The girls are around here somewhere though. Mom probably has them helping with the millions of trays of snacks."

"Oh goody. I haven't seen them in ages," Fernanda said excitedly. With that she was off and searching, leaving Callie alone until the next person came up to her.

**~CA~**

"Sorry, sorry," Arizona apologized as she made her way through the masses of people. She didn't bother to spare anyone a glance as she pushed her way close to her wife. As soon as she was standing next to the woman she loved, she placed a quick kiss on her lips and wrapped an arm around the other woman's back. "Sorry I'm so late. Audrey's mom loves to talk," she explained in reference to her patient and her mother. "Have I missed anything?"

Callie turned and smiled at Arizona. She gave her another quick peck. "Nope, we've been waiting for you."

"You were trying to talk our mom's out of the games, huh?" Arizona smirked knowingly.

"Yes," Callie admitted. There was no use trying to pretend otherwise, her wife knew her to well. And she really didn't want to play all those little games and have all the attention on her.

"It won't be that bad," Arizona tried to reassure to no avail. Callie remembered the shower Barbara had thrown for Arizona. She had been grateful at the time that it was Arizona that was the center of attention and not herself.

"Liar," Callie ground out. She pushed past her wife and headed towards the kitchen. If she was soon going to have all eyes on her, she was going to get something to eat now. Her son was really making her crave like a pound of cheese, so crackers and cheese would have to do.

Arizona followed behind Callie and smiled at the sight of the other woman piling five slices of cheese on top of a single cracker. Her wife's weird craving for cheese always brought a grin out of her. It wasn't the odd combination of foods that was the normal for pregnancy. No, in their household they were going through several pounds of cheese every week. "Have a little cracker with your cheese," she whispered teasingly at her wife.

"Don't be a brat. It's your son's fault," Callie responded as she bit down on her delicious treat.

Arizona ran a hand on Callie's rounded belly. Their son chose that moment to place powerful kick just beneath Arizona's hand. "What are you doing in there, buddy? Huh? Practicing your soccer moves?" she spoke to Callie's stomach. Fingers softly massaged the skin beneath her hand in hopes of feeling another kick.

Callie brushed her hands of cracker crumbs before placing them over top of her wife's. "He loves your voice."

"I can't wait to hold him for the first time," Arizona sighed, trying to imagine it.

"Don't jinx us. We need to make it at least another five weeks before I even dare think of delivering. Preferably the full seven." She was already one week past the point she'd reached with Amelia so for that she had let out a sigh of relief. Now if she could just make it to term with this baby she would feel a whole lot better.

"Alright, alright. I'll wait," Arizona teased. She bent down to be level with her son. "We wouldn't want Mommy to be a nervous wreck now would we?"

Callie just smacked Arizona on the shoulder and turned back to the table for another snack.

"Callie, Arizona, there you girls are," Lucia exclaimed a few minutes later. "Your guests are getting anxious for games to start."

Callie rolled her eyes because she knew it was her mother that wanted the games to start. So long as there was food, most of their guests wouldn't care if they did anything other than eat.

"None of that young lady," Lucia scolded. "We came to an agreement, Barbara and I get two games and you don't get to complain about them."

Callie groaned but followed her mother back into the living room. Arizona quickly filled a plate with cheese and crackers before following them. Maybe she could keep her wife in a good mood if she kept her favorite treat right in front of her the whole time.

Everyone gathered around in a circle around Callie and Arizona who sat front and center on the sofa. Seeing her daughters for the first time all evening, Arizona motioned for them to come sit beside her in the extra space.

"Grandma said we're going to play a game," Lex said with a hint of excitement.

"Yep. And if it's the game I think it is, you two should team up," Arizona advised them. She wanted her girls to have a least fighting chance to win.

Blank paper and pens began to get passed around the room.

"Alright, here's what we're gonna do…" Barbara began.

**~CA~**

Mounds of presents boxed Callie in from all sides as the party began to break up and everyone started to take their leave. She couldn't believe how much stuff they'd received. She knew they hadn't received this much when Arizona was pregnant with Alexia, but then there weren't as many people either.

"How are we ever going to get all this stuff home?" Arizona asked in awe. There was no way all this stuff would fit in their SUV. And she realized even if they got it all home in one trip, they'd still have to carry it upstairs to the nursery. Which landed mostly on her and the girls since she wasn't going to let Callie go up and down the stairs a bunch of times.

"We could always hire some moving men. Surely it's the same concept," Lucia suggested.

Callie shook her head quickly. "No. We'll figure it out." She knew her mother meant well, but that just wasn't how Callie and Arizona did things. They didn't hire people for things they could do themselves.

"I'll call Daniel. Have him come over with the truck. We'll be able to get it all home easily," Barbara offered. She'd tried to get him to come to the shower, saying it was for his grandson, but he refused claiming baby showers were for women.

She wondered what his reaction would be if he knew Carlos had been in attendance. He'd held back and stayed out of the way, but his presence was there. Mostly though he'd been tasked with keeping Nicky entertained since Aria hadn't wanted to get a baby-sitter for the day and it was his nanny's day off.

"Sounds like a plan." This came from Arizona. She was already thinking up ways in roping her dad into helping move everything inside. Although it probably wouldn't be that hard. He'd probably start doing it without even being asked.

A few minutes later Barbara ended the call on her phone and sat it back in her purse. "He'll be here soon as he can," she announced to the room.

"Hey, Callie, can I talk to you privately for a second?" Aria asked hesitantly, breaking up the conversation.

Callie looked around the room and then nodded her head. She led Aria out of the room and down the hall to her favorite room growing up, the library. Once the door was closed behind them, giving them complete privacy, she turned to her sister, waiting for whatever it was she had to say.

"I'm going to tell everyone anyway, but I wanted you to be the first one to know since you were the one that kind of gave me the push," Aria started, rambling just a bit.

Callie wasn't sure what Aria was talking about. She tried to think back on all their conversations in the last eighteen months but couldn't come up with anything. She gave Aria a look telling her to continue. She couldn't believe the words that came out of the older woman's mouth next, but it made her smile.

While Callie and Aria were off chatting, Daniel arrived and the group began sorting through the presents. They made stacks of which items should ride in the truck and which should go into the SUV. Arizona wanted the more delicate or special items to go in their car so that they would have less chance of being damaged or lost.

"What do you think those two are up too?" Lucia wondered aloud as she folded a handmade blanket back up and sat it in the gift bag it came in for protection.

"With those two there's no telling," Arizona answered.

It was more than twenty minutes later when Callie and Aria finally decided to rejoin their family. Their arms were looped through each other's and they were giggling like school girls as they slipped through the doorway. The entire room stopped to stare at the two of them as they made their way into the room, not so quietly either.

"What is going on?" Lucia asked with a hint of a smile. She loved seeing her two girls together, even if it left a bit of sadness wondering if that's how it always should have been. Would they have been as close if they were raised together?

Callie looked over at Aria and smiled then looked at the rest of the room. "Aria has an announcement to make to the family."

"Do you want us to step out?" Barbara asked of her and Daniel.

Aria shook her head and waved a hand. "You two have become just as much family as the rest of this bunch to both Nicky and I," she quickly reassured.

Barbara grinned. "The feeling is definitely mutual."

"So what is the big announcement?" Lucia quickly asked. She was growing impatient and wanted to know what was going on.

Aria scanned her eyes around the room, making sure she had everyone's attention. She decided to start back at the beginning and drag out the announcement just for fun. "Well, a few months after Callie and I had met, Arizona was away to take her test so she brought the girls over and we got to talking. There was a conversation the two of us had and I haven't been able to stop thinking about it ever since."

Aria stopped for a moment, trying to figure out the best way to say what she had to say. She could see the look in her birth mother's eyes and she knew the older woman wanted answers and soon.

She decided to continue and just go with whatever came to mind. "We started talking about the possibility of having more children. Obviously Callie and Arizona were already planning on adding to their family, although it hadn't happened yet. I knew I wanted more kids, but being single I wasn't sure it was the best idea."

She knew several people had questions about where she was going with this, she could see it in their eyes. "I realized one day though that even though I'm single, I'm not alone. I have a sister and sister-in-law who are more than happy to help," she threw a look at both Callie and Arizona. "I miss my parents every day, but I've also found new ones in you, Lucia and Carlos. And Barbara and Daniel as well," She shared a smile that was returned easily. "So I'm not alone anymore."

"Are you trying to tell us you're pregnant?" Lucia burst in. As sweet as the moment was and how much she appreciated what Aria was saying, she couldn't take the anticipation any longer.

Aria laughed and wiped at her eyes, drying the tears that had started to form. "No, I'm not pregnant," she answered. "But a few weeks ago, I started putting in the paperwork so that I can adopt. I loved being pregnant with Nicky, but there are so many children that need homes. I was lucky to land in the arms of my parents. I want to do the same for another child."

Lucia stood up and walked over to her daughter, pulling her into a tight hug. "That is so amazing," she told her.

"Another baby," Barbara squealed in excitement.

"Well maybe not," Aria quickly inserted. "I put in for any child from newborn to eight years old. I wouldn't mind having someone even older than that, but with Nicky so young I thought for now that was a good age range. If I decide to add another child later I might go for even older."

Callie looked at her sister in awe. She hadn't told her that part in their earlier conversation. She too had just assumed her sister meant she wanted another baby. She knew it wouldn't be easy to take in an older child and she had to admire her sister's guts. "Either way, I'm happy for you," she told the other woman and gave her a hug.

"Me too, me too," Arizona added in. She quickly made her way over and pulled Aria to her in a tight hug.

Everyone else soon followed, giving Aria a quick hug and a few whispered words. Including Amelia and Alexia. The excitement in the room was definitely felt by all of them. Even Nicky who still wasn't sure what was going on, but he knew he was going to be a brother someday. And he was very excited about that fact.


	28. Chapter 28

**Chapter 28**

"How's it going over there, Dr. Robbins?" Callie didn't need to see her wife's mouth to know she was smirking under her mask. The two had been working in almost companionable silence on a young girl who had been in a nasty car accident. It wasn't often they had a chance to work together on a case, but they were a great team when the opportunity presented itself.

Callie sent a smile back to Arizona, one that showed in her eyes so the blonde knew it was there. "I'm just about finished here. Her shoulder should be fine after a few weeks of rest, but she'll need rehab on the hand," she explained. As she bent over her rounded belly, she tried to ignore the discomfort she was feeling.

She probably should have stopped operating a few weeks prior, but she made do by sitting on a stool and bending over her stomach. She was a surgeon and surgeons tended to be workaholics. She did, however, agree to start her maternity leave soon.

Arizona saw movement out of the corner of her eye and knew Callie was having a hard time getting comfortable, but she didn't say anything. She didn't want to get into an argument about taking it easy over the top of a patient. Instead she turned back to the girl and finished repairing the tear in the girl's spleen.

Just as Callie was throwing in her last stitch she felt a sensation she really did not want to be feeling right then. "No, no, this isn't happening."

The emotion in Callie's voice made Arizona's head shoot straight up to look at her wife. "What's wrong?" Arizona asked. She looked over to the patient's hand, but when she saw it completely stitched up, she had a feeling her wife's cry had nothing to do with the patient.

Callie looked around the room at the other doctors and nurses then leaned in over the table to speak quietly to Arizona. "I think my water just broke," she admitted.

Blue eyes traveled down Callie's body but couldn't find evidence of her wife's words. The look on the taller woman's face told a different story. "It's going to be fine," Arizona tried to reassure.

"It's too early," Callie cried out. "I was all set to go on maternity leave next week. It wasn't supposed to happen now."

"It's only three weeks early. And considering Amelia's premature birth, making it to 37 weeks is more than we could have hoped for," Arizona reminded her panicked wife. "Will you try and page Dr. Bailey down here, or any other surgeon that can take my place?" She asked the intern who was assisting her, Dr. Brooks.

Callie quickly shook her head and told Dr. Brooks to do no such thing. "Finish your surgery," she told Arizona.

"I can't finish my surgery while you're in labor," Arizona argued.

"Yes, you can. Patients come first."

Blue eyes gave off a stern stare at brown ones. "My wife comes first."

"It'll be hours yet before anything happens. You know that as well as I do," Callie pointed out. She wanted Arizona to be there with her every minute, but that wasn't fair to the patient.

"Alright, fine," Arizona conceded. She was almost finished anyway. "Dr. Brooks, please escort Dr. Robbins upstairs and get her settled into the maternity ward. And page Dr. Walsh." She wished she could kiss her wife right now, do anything to help her in this moment, but she'd just have to wait a little longer. "I'll be up there as soon as I can."

Callie nodded her head and allowed her to be lead out of the room. "Be awesome," she threw over her shoulder before the door closed behind her.

Arizona turned back to her patient and without looking away, instructed one of the nurses to unlock her phone. There were some calls she needed to make. If she couldn't be by Callie's side at that moment, she'd make sure someone was.

**~CA~**

Callie laid back in the hospital bed and allowed herself to be taken care of as a nurse she didn't know covered her with a light blanket. Having gone through pregnancy before, and being a doctor, she knew what was coming as she was hooked to a monitor to track her contractions, but she wasn't happy about it.

"I hear we're about to have a baby," a cheerful voice announced their presence from the doorway.

"I take it Arizona called you," Callie smiled as Barbara glided into the room and took a seat beside Callie's bed.

"She sure did. Told me she was stuck in surgery for a little while but didn't want you to be alone," Barbara admitted. She took one of Callie's hands into her own and laid the other on her daughter-in-law's belly. "Yep, he seems ready to make his appearance."

"He's early though."

"You know as well as I do that three weeks isn't too much of worry. Of course there's always risks, but I'm sure he'll be just fine," Barbara reassured. Callie had, had a fairly healthy pregnancy, there was no reason not to believe this little boy would be anything but healthy when he was born.

"Thanks," Callie told her. "What about the girls?" she asked, thinking about her daughters who would be getting out of school soon.

"Daniel was leaving work when I called and said he'd pick them up on the way. Even bust them out of school if he had too," the older Robbins smiled. "They'll be here soon, you just worry about you. Get some rest while the contractions are still small," she advised. They'd all be in for a long night most likely.

Callie nodded her head and laid back on the pillow, closing her eyes. She knew Barbara was right. Making herself as relaxed as possible, she felt herself falling into a light sleep.

**~CA~**

Arizona ran down the hallways and slammed her thumb into the button for the elevator. By the time she'd finished her surgery, updated the patient's parents, and talked to the chief about leave for her and Callie, it had been two almost three hours since she'd seen Callie.

She knew she probably hadn't missed much. Labor could take many hours and Callie hadn't really had contractions yet. But she hated not being by her wife's side when she was in pain. This was her child and she wanted to be there for it all.

She was just starting to think she should take the stairs when the elevator finally opened up and allowed her entrance. She smacked the number four for the floor she needed and bounced her foot as she waited for the doors to close and her journey to continue.

The ding signaling she had reached her floor had her stepping up to the door and basically falling through it when they opened. Her feet were once again on the run as she raced down the hallway in search of her wife's room.

Her feet glided across the linoleum as she tried to stop herself in front of the room number she was looking for. She held her hands out to grab the wall and stop herself from falling. After which she took a moment to compose herself before calming walking into the room.

It was too much to hope that anyone had missed her little episode out in the hallway as all eyes were on her as she walked into the room. Apparently the whole family had decided to show up for the event as the room was extremely crowded. Only people missing was Tim and family of course. Even little Nicky was there, excited to meet his new cousin.

"Well, I see good news travels fast," she joked as she walked closer to her wife and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "Sorry it took so long to get here. But on the upside is our leave is all set up."

"Good, good," Callie murmured. She glanced around the room at all the family that had shown up. "Maybe we could talk alone for a minute."

Arizona's eyes wandered the room too before announcing for everyone to give them some time alone. She wasn't sure if Callie just wanted some space from all the bodies or if there was seriously something to talk about, but she'd give her wife whatever she wanted.

As soon as the last person was through the door, she closed it tightly and then walked back to sit beside Callie on the bed. She took her wife's hand inside her own and held it tightly.

"Dr. Walsh was in here early asking if we decided about the birth. Vaginal or Cesarean," Callie clarified. "We're kind of running out of time to decide."

Arizona laid her forehead against Callie's and ran a hand down an olive cheek. "Honey, it's your body. You know what's best in the long run."

Callie sighed but nodded. Dr. Walsh said there was no reason she couldn't attempt a natural birth, but after having Amelia born prematurely via C-section she was a little worried about possible complications.

"There's always a risk," Arizona continued. "But Amelia's birth was so long ago, and your body has changed a lot in that time. If you want to try, I'll be here, holding your hand. If not I'm more than okay with sitting beside your head while Dr. Walsh cuts you open."

"Nice imagery," Callie laughed. "I think I want to try. It was a miracle, watching you give birth to Alexia. I want to experience that."

"Alright then. Just don't break my hand, the hospital might be a little upset by that," Arizona teased. She hadn't done much damage to Callie's hand during her own labor, but her wife was a lot stronger than her. And she broke bones for a living.

"I'll try not to," Callie smirked back. "Page Dr. Walsh here so we can tell her before the family comes herding back in," she softly requested.

"Of course," Arizona agreed and kissed Callie lightly on the lips.

When Dr. Walsh arrived, they filled her in quickly about how they wanted to proceed. She reassured them both that it was more than fine and she was confident they'd avoid any complications. She gave Callie a quick exam and informed them she was at six centimeters so it probably wouldn't be too long now.

Arizona let their family in after Dr. Walsh left, but this time people trickled in and out in an effort not to overwhelm the soon to be new moms. And in a lot of ways they would be like new moms all over again. It had been over a decade since they had a newborn, and they hadn't had careers to work around at that time either. It was going to be a whole different experience from their girls.

"So have you girls decided on a name?" Lucia asked at one point when it was just her, Aria, and Barbara in the room. The woman were far more interested in what the name could possibly be then the men. Amelia and Alexia had asked a few weeks previous but dropped it when their mothers told them no.

Callie and Arizona exchanged a look before speaking. "Actually we have an idea, but we want to see him before we decide for sure," Arizona answered.

Lucia nodded in understanding, but felt a little disappointed in not knowing. "Guess we'll find out soon anyway," she finally said, more to herself then to the two women. She just had to be patient.

As if to spite Dr. Walsh's diagnosis that Callie would progress quickly, their son decided to take his time. As each contraction grew worse, Callie hoped it would be over soon. But several hours passed and she was still only at an eight.

"Make him come out, Arizona," she demanded.

"I would if I could, sweetie," Arizona whispered into her wife's hair. "Just a little longer, I promise."

"You've been saying that for over an hour," Callie gritted.

"And you'll forget about all this when you hold him in your arms," Arizona promised again. All the pain and exhaustion melted away the second she'd held Alexia for the first time. It would be the same when Callie held their son.

Under Callie's direct protest, Arizona decided to do her own exam when all the family had managed to leave the room for a moment and left the two of them alone. Callie didn't want her wife to see her in such a clinical way, but Arizona just had a feeling.

"I know you didn't want me to do that," Arizona spoke softly when she was finished. "But you'll be glad I did. It's time we get the doctor back in here," she smiled.

As Dr. Walsh came rushing into the room, Arizona sent a nurse to the waiting room that their family had taken up residence and update them on what was going on. She told the nurse to make sure no one tried to come in the room, they were to stay in the waiting room. Both their mothers weren't happy about this, but Arizona and Callie decided long before Alexia that it would only ever be just the two of them.

"Alright Callie, let's get you up and ready to push," Dr. Walsh instructed. "Okay, on the next contraction, push."

Callie's eyes glazed over with tears of exhaustion and pain as she pushed through each contraction. For a moment she'd wondered why in the world she had decided to do it this way. Arizona held her hand through every moment and ran a cool wash cloth over her face, coaching her through each moment.

"We're almost there, Callie," Dr. Walsh encouraged. "I can see his head. We're almost there. Just a few more pushes and he'll be free."

Callie nodded her head that she understood and bore down once again. She pushed again as hard as she could hoping to free him at last. As soon as she heard a cry erupt in the room she knew why she'd decided to give birth this way.

"You have a healthy baby boy," Dr. Walsh announced and held him up for his mom's to see.

As Arizona had told her, as soon as their boy was tucked away in her arms, Callie forgot every moment before that one. Content to just stare at his little face.

"Look at him," Arizona awed. She ran a hand down his downy fine hair. It was already shades lighter than either of his sisters. Maybe for once the Robbins genes will have won out and they'd have a blond child. It didn't matter either way. He'd still be spoiled as the only boy in the house.

"He's amazing," Callie whispered as she kissed his little forehead. "Hey, little boy. We've been waiting for you for a long time." If she didn't know better, she could have sworn he just grinned at them. His big eyes took both his mothers in as he scrutinized them. They were a very dark blue so there was no telling what color they'd up being in the long run.

As much as she didn't want to leave her baby boy, Arizona knew their family would want an update and not from a nurse or doctor. "I'll be right back. I'm going to go update our family while they get both of you cleaned up," she whispered. She gave them both a kiss on the forehead before entrusting them to their colleagues to be taken care of.

"It's a healthy baby boy. Six pounds three ounces and 17 inches long," Arizona announced as she bounced into the room containing her family. "Considering he's a little early that's more than we could hope for."

The room erupted into congratulations and questions on when they could see meet him. Arizona finally had to hold fingers to her lips and whistle to get them to all quiet down. "They are being cleaned up now. I'll have someone come get you when they are ready," she promised, before disappearing again to head back to in.

Arizona gave Callie and her baby a few minutes more of quiet once they were settled before sending a nurse out to retrieve the antsy relatives. She knew it wasn't going to be quiet for some time with the amount of Robbins' and Torres' in their midst.

"You say the word and I'll kick them all out," Arizona promised in their last few moments of silence.

Callie smiled at the protectiveness of her wife before telling her it was okay for them to come in. The sooner they met the newest little Robbins, the sooner they would hopefully all leave.

As they waited for their family to descend upon them, Arizona pulled out her phone and called her brother's house on skype. She wanted them to at least have some participation of this introduction. "Hey brother, get your family over here," she greeted when she saw Tim's face appear on screen.

He turned and yelled over his shoulder for his wife and son who appeared onscreen a few seconds later. "Is he here?" Megan asked excitedly.

"Just a moment, wait for everyone else," Arizona told him.

One by one the room filled with bodies all circling the bed. Arizona handed her phone to her mother so that the Robbins' on the screen could join the rest of the group.

Arizona smiled at their family and took their son from Callie's arms. She held him up so everyone could see him. "Everyone, we'd like you to meet Carter James Robbins."

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I had a lot of predictions and suggestions for A names but from the very beginning I knew I wasn't going to do that. I figured poor Callie is all alone and since Arizona got the girls, Callie should at least have their boy. So hope you liked his name anyway. There wasn't a lot of C names I liked for them but I wanted it to be a C.
> 
> This story will probably be wrapping up soon as my muse is ready to move on. I originally only meant for this story to be 8/10 chapters, and we're at almost 30 now.


	29. Chapter 29

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So the format to the chapter is a little different. It is also the last chapter minus the epilogue that will be up sometime soon.
> 
> To the guest reviewer who left me a message about what you'd like to still see. Sorry but I already had finished writing this story before that review. Maybe if I get the inspiration I'll write more oneshots for this verse. Right now however I'm ready to put it to rest for awhile and move on.

**Chapter 29**

_**November (Ten Days Old)** _

"Shh, shh, little man," Arizona whispered to the bundle in her arms as she bounced him up and down in an attempt to quiet his cries. She rocked his little body as she made her way towards the bed she shared with her wife.

"Callie," she called quietly, not wanting to startle her wife or the baby in her arms. "Callie," she called a little louder when she still didn't get a response. "Our little man is hungry."

Callie rolled over then and tried to bury her head further in the covers. "You feed him then," she mumbled.

Arizona let out a chuckle at her wife's response. "I would love to feed him, but unfortunately my boobs don't have what he wants," she joked.

Callie groaned, but forced herself to sit up in the bed. "I forgot how exhausting it was to have a newborn in the house," she said as she unbuttoned her pajama top. She took Carter from Arizona's arms and settled him against her breast to nurse.

"If you want to put your head back and go back to sleep, I'll keep an eye on him," Arizona offered. She knew how tired the other woman was. They'd only been home for just over a week and were still trying to get adjusted to their new life. It didn't help that Carter rarely went more than 90 minutes between meals, leaving Callie with very little sleep. He seemed to have a much bigger appetite than either of his sisters.

"No, I'm good," Callie responded. She ran her free hand over her son's little head, just taking him in. As much work as he was already proving to be, she wouldn't trade him for anything in the world. "You know, every time I watched you nurse Alexia I was so jealous. I never got to do that with Amelia. I wanted to, but it wasn't possible."

Arizona tucked herself up against Callie, laying her head so that she too could watch their son eat. "You never told me that," she spoke sadly.

"It didn't seem important. It wouldn't change anything," Callie sighed.

Arizona turned her head up to look into the brown eyes she loved so much. "Of course it was important. If you're upset, I want to know about it."

"It doesn't matter now," Callie dismissed. "I finally get to experience it myself with this little guy. It's definitely up there in my top favorite moments."

"It's a good thing that's my kid, or I'd be really jealous right now," Arizona teased. She could understand where Callie was coming from.

The two women fell into silence then, content to just watch their baby. Even after a week, they still couldn't believe that he was really there and he was really theirs. More than seven months of trying to get pregnant than the almost nine months of Callie's pregnancy were all worth it to get to where they were right now. Cuddled in their bed with their son falling back asleep and their girls passed out down the hall.

_**December (Six Weeks Old)** _

Callie rolled over and rubbed the sleep from her eyes. The room was just starting to glow with the light of early morning. It wasn't until she happened to catch sight of the time on the alarm clock that she realized that something wasn't right. Even though at six weeks old Carter was now sleeping between three and four hours at a time, he was usually awake for the morning at this time.

She rolled over to make sure Arizona was still in bed beside her. The blonde was still sound asleep, so she hadn't gotten up with their son and not awoken her. Forcing herself not to panic, Callie pulled herself up and out of bed, wanting to ensure that her son was in fact still asleep.

The bassinet in their room turned up empty, but this wasn't alarming yet as they'd been trying to transition him into his crib in his own room. She made her way across the hall, opening doors quietly so as not to wake the whole house. It was Saturday after all, and her girls usually like to sleep in until after ten.

She walked quietly over to the crib, not wanting to wake Carter if he was actually still asleep. Expecting to find her baby inside tucked under his soft blue and green blanket Barbara had made him, she held in a scream when neither was inside.

She was just about to wake Arizona to figure out what was going on when a noise from downstairs floated to her ears. Her bare feet moved quickly but quietly down the stairs, not wanting to startle whoever was down there and alert them to her presence. Much of her worry ceased when she heard Alexia's laughter just before she made it to the family room.

Peeking around the doorway she grinned at what she saw. Alexia was reclined back on one end of the couch and Amelia on the other. Her oldest daughter's legs were up on the couch with her brother laying across her legs, watching her intently as she played some racing game with her sister.

She raced back up the stairs as softly as she could. She needed her phone to take a picture and Arizona needed to see this for herself. Grabbing her phone off the charger, she shook Arizona's shoulder a little trying to get her to wake. "Get up sleepy head."

"Don't wanna," Arizona whined, covering her head with Callie's pillow.

"Trust me, you're going to want to see this for yourself," Callie told her. She pulled on Arizona's arm, getting her up into a sitting position. "Hurry, before we miss it."

Arizona groaned but stood up and followed her wife out of the room. She rolled her eyes when Callie held a finger to her lips telling her to be quiet, but did it anyway. The two mother's stood side by side in the doorway to the family room, both with smiles on their faces as they watched their three children.

"You going to help me beat Lex, CJ? Huh?" Amelia asked her baby brother. The infant moved his mouth as if he was trying to answer, but no sound came out.

Callie turned to Arizona and mouthed "CJ?" Arizona just shrugged her shoulders in response. The letters were their boy's initials, so it seemed an acceptable nickname she supposed. One that would soon take over the entire family.

"Yay, we did it!" she told the baby, nudging his little hand like she was trying to give him a high five.

This was the kind of scene Callie and Arizona had wished for when they decided to have another child. They had worried for a while that their girls wouldn't accept the intruder into their lives, but apparently they needn't have worried. Alexia and Amelia both had fallen in love with their little brother.

Carter turned his little head in their direction as the two women walked further into the room. He tried to coo at them, drawing the girls' attention away from their game. "Morning, Moms," Lex called before turning back to the screen.

"Good morning," Amelia greeted as well.

"Morning girls," Arizona responded. She leaned over the couch to press a kiss to the back of each girls head before taking a seat adjacent to them on the love seat.

"Yes, good morning," Callie finished the greeting. "What are you two doing up so early?" she asked curiously. "And why didn't you wake us?"

"I woke up to use the bathroom and heard him moving around in his crib. He wasn't crying yet so I figured I'd let you two sleep a little longer," Amelia explained. "I fed him one of the little bottles you had saved in the fridge, but there wasn't a lot in there. Seemed to hold him over for now though." She looked down at the baby in her lap who seemed content for now.

"Well, thank you," Callie told her oldest. She couldn't believe her little girl would be 15 in just a few short months. She had grown up so much in the past year it was uncanny. She bent over and kissed Amelia on the forehead before plucking her son from her lap.

She had only just started pumping on occasion so that Arizona could start helping with feedings. She knew that she'd have to go back to work eventually as well and would no longer be able to feed him every meal herself. The extra sleep she'd gotten this morning was definitely worth it.

She settled her boy across her chest, hoping he was ready to eat some more now, if not she'd have to go pump, if only to release some of the pressure. Arizona curled into her side as was habit and the two watched as the girls got back to their game, more competitive now that Amelia no longer had Carter on her lap.

_**April (Six Months Old)** _

Every seat in the Torres dining room was taken as the large family filled the room. Even Tim and Megan had made it to Seattle to celebrate this Easter with the family. Looking back now to the beginning of her relationship with Arizona, Callie never would have believed then that someday the Robbins and Torres clans would choose to spend holidays together, but now it was normal. Neither family gave it much thought.

She watched with a smile as Tim helped Megan pull her chair up to the table, careful of her rounded belly. The couple had announced their second child on New Year's, much to the excitement of everyone. Arizona was most ecstatic to have another niece or nephew to play with. Her wife was a big kid at heart.

Food began to get passed around the table. Everyone had contributed to the meal this year. It was so different from the way she had grown up, with their cooks making the meal, or having someone cater for parties. It was a welcomed changed for her. Even Lucia was getting pretty decent at cooking meals, having taken lessons from both Callie and Barbara.

When the rolls came around to her, she snatched two. She placed one on her plate, and began to tear the second into little pieces and put them on the tray on her son's high chair. He was still too little to eat much of what was being served, but just like their girls at that age, neither mother saw the harm in allowing him to munch on a little bread. And he loved it.

"Ma, Ma, Ma," he shouted, getting Arizona's attention who sat on the other side of him. He held out his little hand with a piece of roll squished between his fingers.

"Did mommy give you some bread?" Arizona asked her son with excitement. "What a treat for you." He smiled and tried to give her some. "You eat it, CJ," she told him. "Mama's got some of her own," she told him, holding up her own roll for him to see.

The little boy grinned and stuck it in his mouth. He looked around the room in curiosity at all the people. He knew they were all his people but he wasn't used to seeing all of them at one time. He let out a laugh when Nicky stuck his tongue out at him and tried to copy the little boy. Further down the table JoJo saw this and joined the other two boys in the room.

Carlos watched the three of them all and laughed. "Boys will be boys," he muttered to no one in particular.

As dessert was being passed around the table, Aria clinked her glass, getting everyone's attention. "I wasn't sure if I wanted to announce this or not, because there are so many chances for it to go wrong."

All eyes turned to the young woman, hoping with baited breath that they knew what was coming.

"The adoption agency contacted me last week. They have a girl who has come down to choosing between me and another couple. I met with her a few days ago and she's a really sweet girl, only just turned 17. She doesn't have parents either. She lives with an aunt who doesn't seem to care much for her," Aria shared with the room.

No one knew exactly what to say. Aria hadn't been picked yet and no one in this room wished the situation on the young girl. Especially Lucia and Callie who knew what it was like to be that girl.

"Do you think you have a chance?" Callie asked softly, not sure if it was right or not.

Aria sighed and gathered her thoughts. "Honestly, I'm not sure. I do know one thing though, the other couple she's considering only wants a closed adoption, where I'm okay with having an open adoption which is what this girl wants. Getting to know all of you in the last couple years, I know how rewarding it can be to know your birth family. I see no reason why my child couldn't know their birth family so long as it was in their best interest."

Everyone smiled at that. Adding Aria and Nicky to their family had really been a rewarding experience for everyone sitting at that table. They knew exactly where she was coming from. A relationship with the child's birth mother wouldn't stop with just Aria and would probably extend through the whole family, as this family loved to welcome anyone into their homes.

"Well, here's to hope," Lucia said, lifting her glass in the air. The rest of the group followed suit. Even Carter grabbed his bottle and using two hands lifted it above his head. A huge gummy grin adorned his face as he felt like one of the big people.

As small conversations once again broke out across the room, Callie smiled at each and every member of her family. Sixteen years ago, she never would have imagined being a part of a family like this. She looked over to her wife, the woman who had made it all possible. She smiled when Arizona's blue eyes locked on her own. Signaling for Arizona to come closer, she leaned around their son and placed a kiss on Arizona's cheek. "I love you."

"I love you, too," Arizona smiled back. And Callie couldn't imagine being anywhere else. This was everything she'd ever wanted right here in front of her.


	30. Chapter 30

**Epilogue**

As the footsteps down the hallway grew louder Callie let out a smile and wondered how long it would be until those tiny feet came through her bedroom door. When the door handle started to wiggle, she snapped her eyes shut and pretended to be asleep. She didn't want her son to know she'd been listening to him on the baby monitor for the last 15 minutes. Even though he was no longer a baby, they kept the monitor in his room because he often woke up in the middle of the night for one reason or another.

Sock covered feet padded along the carpet, slowly making their way towards the bed. A little fist pulled away from the little boy's body and softly poked Callie on the shoulder. "Mommy, up, up," CJ ordered a little louder than his mother would have preferred.

Callie faked a yawn and rubbed at her eyes as if she was just opening them up for the first time. She looked around the room before settling her eyes on her son, as if she'd only just realized he was there. "Oh, good morning sweetie. What are you doing up already?" she asked softly.

"Birfday!" CJ exclaimed, still having a bit of a hard time with the 'th' sound.

"Whose birthday is it?"

"Mine."

Callie grinned and picked her little boy up and sat him on her lap. "And just who are you?" she teased.

"I Carter James Robbins," he stated proudly. Both of his grandfather's had worked with him on saying his whole name. They wanted him to proud of his name and his family. Even if everyone in the family chose to refer to him by the nickname his oldest sister had given him.

"And how old is Carter James now?"

"I three," CJ answered, holding up his hand to show three fingers.

Callie faked a look of surprise and gasped. "No you can't be three already. You're still my baby aren't you?"

"Not a baby. I a big boy."

"Yes you certainly are," Callie tickled his belly lightly, getting a giggle out of him. Her little boy was growing up so fast and she hated every minute of it. She ran a hand through his soft hair that was so light it could almost be considered blond. She never would have believed they'd have a blond child, but it seemed that the Robbins genes did win out in the form of Carter.

"Does the birthday boy want to help me make a special birthday breakfast?" CJ nodded his head enthusiastically. "Alright then, let's go," she told him as she set him back down on the floor.

"Mama?"

Callie shot a look to her wife, and smiled to see she was still out cold. She leaned down and placed a quick kiss on the other woman's cheek before standing back up. "Let's let Mama sleep awhile longer."

CJ didn't seem to mind either way and hurried out of the room and down the stairs. He was eager for the day to start so that he could finally have his party he'd been asking about for so long.

**~CA~**

Later that afternoon the party was in full swing. Family and friends filled the house with laughter and noise. Who would have thought that a three-year old's birthday was such an occasion. But clearly everyone wanted to celebrate with the little boy who stole his charm from his mama.

"Hey Callie, quite a turn out," Aria greeted her sister as the two woman wrapped each other in a tight hug. In the last three years the sisters had only grown closer as their families seemed to grow. "Gracie was so excited to wear her new dress for the occasion," Aria told her, motioning to the two year old attached to her leg. "Monica bought the dress," she mouthed to Callie. Monica was Grace's biological mother who spent time with her one day every month. An arrangement that Aria was more than happy with.

"Well, hello there Miss Grace," Callie greeted and bent down so she was eye level with her niece. "Don't you look pretty."

"I pretty like a princess," the little girl stated.

"You sure are. Can I have a hug?" Callie asked, opening her arms for the little girl who fell easily into them.

"Where's your brother and sister?" she asked the tot as they pulled out of their hug. Grace shrugged her shoulders and looked around the room but didn't spot them.

"Nick and Natalie are probably in the other room attached to some game," Aria answered instead. Her other two children loved coming to their aunt Callie and Arizona's house for the simple reason that there was always the latest console and games in this house, something their own mother was continually behind on.

In a weird twist of fate, while Aria had been waiting to hear if Monica had chosen to place her unborn child with her, a case about and abused child had come across her desk. The little girl was only five years old and had no place to go once her parents were both put in jail for the abuse. Aria had fallen in love with the little brunette and quickly asked to foster her.

She began adoption proceedings immediately and was more than half way through when Monica finally made her decision. Knowing it was going to be a lot to handle, Aria had made the choice to take on both children. She knew it was going to be a real lifestyle change, but that she wouldn't be doing it alone. She'd never regretted the decision and was incredibly happy with her life and her small family.

It had taken awhile for Natalie to adjust to her new environment and to feel safe again, but through lots of love, Aria had gotten through to her. Now even though they were almost two years apart, Nick and Natalie were almost like twins they were so close. Grace tended to stick closer to their mother.

After promising to catch up some more later, Callie began making her way through the house. She hadn't seen Arizona for a while and was beginning to wonder where her wife had disappeared too. Just as she was crossing through the living room, the front door opened to reveal Tim and family.

"Hey, you guys made it!" Callie greeted. With a storm making its way through the city, no one was sure if the other Robbins clan would be able to make it since the airport was considering shutting down all flights until it passed. They were really hoping no one would be missing for not only CJ's birthday, but Thanksgiving as well, which was later in the week.

"Just barely," Megan stated as her husband helped her take off her coat. "The airport shut down just as our flight got in."

"Well, at least mom and dad only live next door," Callie said, referring to Barbara and Daniel. "If worst comes to worst, we'll have plenty of room between the two houses to hold everyone for the night." They'd almost cancelled the party after Callie had watched the news earlier that day and found out the weather was likely to get much worse before it gets better. But neither mother could disappoint their little boy on his birthday.

Tim and Megan both agreed and bent down to help their two little boys take off their coats. As soon as JoJo's was free of his, he was off and running to find someone to play with. Devin was a little more nervous with all the people around.

"Hey, sweet boy," Callie said to the two-year old. "Your aunty Arizona is going to be happy to see you made it. She's been looking forward to your visit," she told the little boy.

The two woman were really close to Aria's children since they lived in the same city and it always saddened them that the same couldn't be said for their two Utah nephews. Tim had tried to put in relocations requests to be close, but none had ever gone through. They'd come to accept that they may be forever bound to Utah.

"Where is that sister of mine?" Tim asked. It was unlike Arizona to not be there greeting them herself. Even when they weren't expected, Arizona had a sixth sense when it came to her brother and nephews and always seemed to know when they've arrived.

"I'm not sure. I was just going to search for her when you arrived," Callie answered. "I'll go see if I can find her."

Callie had a good idea of where she would find her wife. And if she was where she thought she was, that only meant trouble. She gently pushed people out of her way as she headed for the kitchen.

"Ah ha, busted," Callie smirked as she caught her wife about to dig her finger into the frosting on the cake.

Arizona froze and put on her best innocent smile. She could probably get Callie to forget all about this moment if she played her cards right.

Callie pushed herself off the doorway where she had rested herself and closed the distance between her and her wife. She wrapped an arm around the younger woman and placed a gentle hand on her belly, giving it a soft rub. "I figured you'd be in here."

"It's not my fault," Arizona pouted. "It's your son's. He really wanted some frosting."

"Is that right?" Callie asked, staring deeply into her wife's eyes. The other woman just nodded her head. Squatting down so she was level with a rounded belly. "Is that true Colton? Did you make Mama try to steal frosting from your brother's cake?"

"It was him, I swear," Arizona insisted. She laid a hand on her belly and rubbed gently. Just a couple more months and they'd have another son.

They'd decided to try for one more child shortly around CJ's first birthday. A nice even number would suit their family well, they had both agreed. Unfortunately it had taken more than a year to get pregnant this time. Partly out of failure and partly because they had taken breaks every few months to try and relax them. Eventually everything they had done paid off and Arizona was pregnant.

"I had a feeling you'd try to use that excuse," Callie smiled at her wife. A look that said she knew something that the other woman did not. She went over to the fridge and pulled out a small covered bowl. "I didn't need you ruining my decorated cake before everyone got a chance to see it so I made a little extra." Callie pulled the cover off the bowl and showed Arizona the chocolate frosting sitting inside.

Arizona beamed as her dimples popped and kissed Callie quickly. "This is why you are the best wife ever," she exclaimed as she took the bowl from Callie and went in search of a spoon.

"I kind of love that you and I don't have the most conventional of pregnancy cravings," Callie thought out loud. "It makes us well matched." As Arizona took a spoonful of frosting and shoveled it into her mouth, Callie gave her a quick peck on the side of her mouth, tasting the little bit of frosting that resided there. "Delicious."

"Mmm hmm," Arizona agreed.

"Well when you've satisfied your craving, Tim and Megan are here."

Arizona barely heard the words, already lost in her own little chocolate world. "This is so good," she moaned.

Callie watched as her wife was no longer even aware of her presence. "I'll just leave…" she looked between the bowl and the blonde, "leave you two alone."

As the whole family gathered around CJ an hour later to sing Happy Birthday, Callie looked around at each one of them. Unconsciously her hand reached around to hold Arizona close and rest on top of their baby, needing that connection to their unborn child. Their life together was just about perfect and she couldn't help but feel it would only get better.

Sure the winds brought them change every now and again. But looking at Aria, some of those were good changes. As the snow fell down outside, the storm not easing up, everyone she loved was here in this room. So long as she had her loved ones, she could weather any storm that came her way. With Arizona by her side, always.

**The End**

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> There we have it, the completion of this story. I may or may not return to this verse with oneshots, but I make no promises on that. Currently I have a couple of other stories rolling around in my head that I hope you all enjoy just as much.
> 
> Thank you everyone for sticking through with me for this long journey.


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